INITIAL GROWTH-PROCESSES OF AG ON POLAR AND NONPOLAR SEMICONDUCTOR SUBSTRATES

Initial growth processes of Ag on both InSb(lll)A and alpha-Sn(lll) su bstrates at room temperature have been investigated by using reflectio n high-energy electron diffraction and Auger electron spectroscopy. Th e results show that the growth features are quite different for each s ystem: Ag grows in the Stranski-Krastanov mode on InSb(lll)A, while fo r Ag/alpha-Sn(lll) the majority of the deposited Ag atoms are consumed in forming an Ag-Sn alloy. Discrete variational-X alpha calculations showed that an onset of such growth modes is closely related to interf acial chemical bonding features for both systems.