title: Origins of nanoscale heterogeneity in ultrathin films.
abstract: A key challenge in thin-film growth is controlling structure and composition at the atomic scale. We have used spatially resolved electron scattering to measure how the three-dimensional composition profile of an alloy film evolves with time at the nanometer length scale. We show that heterogeneity during the growth of Pd on Cu(001) arises naturally from a generic step-overgrowth mechanism relevant in many growth systems.
authors.affiliation: IBM Research Division, T.J. Watson Research Center, Yorktown Heights, New York 10598, USA. jbhannon@us.ibm.com
authors.forename: J B
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Hannon
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sun
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pohl
authors.forename: G L
authors.initials: GL
authors.lastname: Kellogg