Effects of hydrogen impurities on the diffusion, nucleation, and growth of Si on Si(001)

Abstract

The diffusion, nucleation, and growth of Si on Si(001) predosed with varying amounts of hydrogen were studied by scanning tunneling microscopy and kinetic Monte Carlo simulations. Between 300--500 K, the Si island density increases significantly even at a very small H concentration. The effective activation energy for Si diffusion is doubled if 4% of the surface is covered by H. Above 550 K the influence of hydrogen on Si islanding disappears, suggesting mobility of H even below this temperature.