Epitaxial grain growth in thin metal films

Abstract

Epitaxial alignment has been obtained by means of grain growth in polycrystalline films deposited on single-crystal substrates. A theory for epitaxial grain growth is outlined and results given for experiments on Au, Al, Cu, and Ag films on vacuum-cleaved NaCl, KBr, KCl, or mica. Epitaxial grain growth provides a fundamentally different alternative to conventional epitaxy, and can lead to very thin films with improved continuity and crystalline perfection, as well as non-lattice-matched orientations.