Controlling growth of nanorod via screening effects

TL;DR

This paper investigates how screening effects influence nanorod growth, showing that increased screening reduces active length and promotes nanorod formation by affecting mound thickness.

Contribution

It introduces a model linking screening effects to nanorod growth dynamics, highlighting the role of active length and mound thickness in nanorod formation.

Findings

Active length decreases with stronger screening effects.

Thickening of the mound scales with the square of active length.

Smaller active length favors nanorod formation.

Abstract

We demonstrate in this report that nanorods can spontaneously grow on the top of a transient mound when the screening effect is considered in island growth. The number of the topmost growing layers is defined as the active length, which decreases as the screening effect is enhanced. It follows that the thickness of the transient mound underneath the nanorod increases as the square of the active length, and a smaller active length favors the formation of nanorod.