Terrace-dependent morphology of thin Sn films deposited on the fivefold surface of the icosahedral Al–Cu–Fe quasicrystal

Abstract

We present an analysis of Sn film growth on the fivefold surface of the icosahedral Al–Cu–Fe quasicrystal at multilayer coverage. Scanning tunnelling microscopy of the Sn-deposited surface revealed that film morphology differed from terrace to terrace. Most terraces exhibited flat-topped clusters with preferential growth at the step edges, while a minority of terraces showed a smooth film. The height, lateral size and density of clusters also varied between terraces. Clusters have a preference for specific heights.

Acknowledgement

Part of this work was supported by JST Solution-Oriented Research for Science and Technology (SORST) and JSPS Grants-in-Aid for Scientific Research. One of the authors (H.R.S.) would like to thank the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS) for a fellowship grant (IdNo. P04558). We also thank W. Theis at FU Berlin and V. Fournée at CNRS Nancy, for valuable suggestions.