Reabsorption effect and spatial ordering in island ripening.
A model for detachment-limited island ripening is analyzed in terms of a reabsorption (or pedophagous) effect where islands releasing monomers can reabsorb their own offspring. When the effect is artificially turned off, ripened island arrays are spatially disordered and the island growth rates and size distribution are easily understood in terms of a classic mean field theory. With the pedophagous effect included, the arrays develop a spatial ordering consistent with experimental studies. The ordering is quantified through a correlation between island size and the number of nearby neighbors, yielding modified mean field island growth rates and a much-improved expression for the island size distribution. It is suggested that the spatial ordering and our explanation are widely applicable to ripening systems.
Tarr
D M
DM
Department of Physics, University of Reading, Whiteknights, P.O. Box 220, Reading RG6 6AF, United Kingdom.
Mulheran
P A
PA