Temperature Influence on the Si(111) Surface Relief Evolution During Au Deposition

The influence of temperature on the silicon surface morphology during gold deposition was analyzed using Monte Carlo simulation. It was demonstrated that a high- temperature gold deposition (T> 1200 K) leads to the formation of silicon islands on the surface. The Au atom diffusion into the bulk crystal by the exchange mechanism leads to the Si atom emergence from the bulk crystal to the surface. The formation and movement of gold droplets on the vicinal Si(111) surface was observed in the temperature range of 650–850 K. The droplets nucleation mainly on the steps of the vicinal Si(111) surface and motion towards the higher steps were shown. The temperature decrease causes the directional lateral displacement of the droplet to the opposite side of the step. An analysis on the kinetics of droplet motion over a silicon surfaces was conducted. It was demonstrated that the Si substrate temperature affects the droplet density and size. The droplet velocity dependence on temperature was obtained.