Control of the initial oxidation on Cu(001) surface by selection of translational energy of O-2 molecules

In the initial oxidation of Cu(001) by O-2, the surface is oxidized in a la yer-by-layer manner up to one monolayer, followed by Cu2O islanding. The la yer-by-layer oxidation is promoted by the increasing translational energy o f incident O-2 and is insensitive to surface temperature. By contrast, the formation of Cu2O is promoted by the decreasing translational energy of inc ident O-2 and by increasing surface temperature in the temperature range be tween room temperature and 650 K. Our results demonstrate controllable init ial oxidation by the adjustment of the translational energy of O-2, offerin g the prospect of using this approach to aid in the development of new fabr ication of metal oxide and Si devices. (C) 1999 American Institute of Physi cs. [S0003-6951(99)03333-1].