Step wandering on Al/Si(111)-(root 3 x root 3) surface at high temperatures

Step fluctuations on a multi-component surface of Al/Si(1 1 1)-(root3 x roo t3) were studied using variable-temperature STM at temperatures 770-1020 K. The reduced step diffusivity, b(2)/a, has been found to vary from 0.45 Ang strom at 770 K up to 1.00 Angstrom at 1020 K. Its temperature dependence fo llows the expected exponential law, from which the effective energy of kink formation has been determined to be 0.214 eV. Above 870 K, temporal effect s complicate the analysis of the spatial pair correlation function. It is d emonstrated that consistent results can be obtained in this case by employi ng surfaces quenched to room temperature. (C) 2001 Elsevier Science B.V. Al l rights reserved.