The renormalization group theory is applied to the determination of localiz
ed phonons in a finite size two dimensional monolayer. The fixed-point equa
tion defines the critical values of the adsorbate-substrate force constants
leading to the occurrence of localized modes. The transformation equation
near the fixed point gives scaling laws and critical exponents which charac
terize the asymptotic behavior of the localization length of the phonons. (
C) 2000 American Institute of Physics. [S0021-9606(00)70609-X].