Revised structure zone model for thin film physical structure

Abstract

Thin films prepared under conditions of low adatom mobility are characterized by a highly anisotropic physical structure with a wide range of systematically varying column and void sizes. The structure zone models, previously developed to classify the larger sized physical structures, are revised to account for the evolutionary growth stages of structure development as well as the separate effects of thermal- and bombardment-induced mobility. The zone T introduced by Thornton is shown to be a subzone within zone 1.