Note to users. If you're seeing this message, it means that your browser cannot find this page's style/presentation instructions -- or possibly that you are using a browser that does not support current Web standards. Find out more about why this message is appearing, and what you can do to make your experience of our site the best it can be.

Science 2 August 2002:
Vol. 297. no. 5582, pp. 827 - 831
DOI: 10.1126/science.1073404
Prev | Table of Contents | Next

Reports

Laminar Growth of Ultrathin Metal Films on Metal Oxides: Co on Hydroxylated alpha -Al2O3(0001)

S. A. Chambers,1* T. Droubay,1 D. R. Jennison,2 T. R. Mattsson2

Metals deposited in vacuum on metal oxides such as alumina normally grow as three-dimensional clusters because of weak adatom-substrate interactions. This tendency hinders our ability to form interfaces of ultrathin, laminar metal films on oxides for use in microelectronics and other technologies where nanostructural control is desired. We present experimental and theoretical results showing that room temperature Co deposition on fully hydroxylated clean sapphire (alpha -Al2O3) produces a surface chemical reaction that leads to laminar growth, despite a large mismatch in lattice constants. This process should be applicable to a wide range of metals and metal oxides.

1 Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, Post Office Box 999, MSK8-93, Richland, WA 99352, USA.
2 Sandia National Laboratories, Post Office Box 5800, Albuquerque, NM 87185-1415, USA.
*   To whom correspondence should be addressed. E-mail: sa.chambers{at}pnl.gov

Read the Full Text


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Oxygen-Mediated Diffusion of Oxygen Vacancies on the TiO2(110) Surface.
R. Schaub, E. Wahlstrom, A. Ronnau, E. Lagsgaard, I. Stensgaard, and F. Besenbacher (2003)
Science 299, 377-379
   Abstract »    Full Text »    PDF »


To Advertise     Find Products

Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)