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Abstract
In this study the growth mechanism of {111} tabular silver halide crystals will be examined. The side-face structure and aspect ratio of tabular silver bromide crystals grown from different concentrations of silver bromide dissolved in dimethylsulphoxide (DMSO) were established in situ and ex situ. For tabular silver bromide crystals grown by the industrial doublejet precipitation method, transmission electron microscopy images of ultramicrotomed sections of the side faces were analysed. Also for tabular silver bromide and tabular silver chloride crystals grown from the vapour phase the relation between the aspect ratio and side-face structure was studied. Using the result of the different crystallization techniques it is shown that there is a strong relation between the aspect ratio and the side-face structure. For tabular crystals grown from DMSO, by industrial double-jet precipitation and from the vapour phase the same relation between the aspect ratio and side-face structure is observed. This provides evidence to support the idea that the growth mechanism of {111} tabular crystals is universal and independent of the crystal growth technique or crystallization medium. The preferential lateral growth of the tabular crystals can be explained by the substep mechanism proposed by Ming and co-workers in an earlier study. This mechanism explains the increase in growth rate of a {111} side face linked via a twin plane to a faster growing {100} side face.