3.

Morphology and Structure of Surfaces

and Interfaces

To begin with, it will be useful to give a brief definition of the terms mor-
phology and structure. The term morphology is associated with a macro-
scopic property of solids. The word originates from the Greek p.opl/Jh, which
means form or shape, and here it will be used to refer to the macroscopic
form or shape of a surface or interface. Structure, on the other hand, is as-
sociated more with a microscopic, atomistic picture and will be used to
denote the detailed geometrical arrangement of atoms and their relative
positions in space.
The distinction between the two terms, however, is sometimes not so
clear, even in the case of a clean, well-defined surface prepared in URV
(Chap.2). What we consider as morphology, i.e. as shape, depends on the
type of property being considered and on the resolution of the technique
used for its observation. Furthermore, the atomistic structure may often de-
termine, or at least have a significant influence on, the morphology of an
interface. For example, details of the interatomic forces determine whether
a metal deposited on a semiconductor surface grows layer by layer or
whether islands are formed. It is thus necessary to consider both aspects,
morphology and structure, in a little more detail. For this purpose one has
to approach the problem of an interface from both macroscopic and
atomistic viewpoints.

3.1 Surface Tension and Macroscopic Shape

The most general macroscopic approach to a problem in the physics of mat-

ter is that of thermodynamics. The specific features associated with a ther-
modynamic description of an interface are illustrated in Fig.3.l for the ex-
ample of a solidjvapor interface. Through this interface the solid maintains
thermodynamic equilibrium with its vapor. The interface region separates
the two homogeneous phases, but the interface itself is not a sharp, well-
defined geometrical surface. All physical quantities, e.g. the density in
Fig.3.l, change more or less gradually from their solid to their vapor values
(psand Pv in Fig.3.1). The interface region whose spatial extent t is of
atomistic dimensions (depending on the system 2.,.IOOA), is thus a strongly
inhomogeneous region in equilibrium with two homogeneous phases, the
solid and the vapor. Since the interface layer is a material system with a
well-defined volume and material content, most thermodynamic properties

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H. Lüth, Surfaces and Interfaces of Solids
© Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 1993
 Fig.3.1. Schematic description of a
solid/vapor interface (area A, thickness
t). The solid is in thermodynamic equi-
librium with its vapor. In the interface
region the density P of the material
changes gradually from its solid value
P. to its vapor value Pv

are defined as usual. Temperature, free energy, composition, chemical po-

tential per particle etc., all have their usual meaning, as in the neighboring
homogeneous phases. The only quantity that has to be considered more
carefully, is the press ure p [3.1,2]. In a homogeneous bulk phase the force
across any unit area is equal in all directions. This is no longer true for the
interface region. Within the interface, the force across any plane of unit
area parallel to A (Fig.3.1) has the same value, i.e. the press ure p. It is also
the same in both homogeneous phases in thermodynamic equilibrium. If, on
the other hand, we choose aplane perpendicular to the interface plane, e.g.
the plane with area bt, the force across this area will not be pbt, in general,
but will differ from this by a certain amount. If we write the force f.l
across this plane bt normal to the interface plane as

f.l = pbt - '1b , (3.1)

then'1 defines the so-caUed inter/acial or sur/ace tension. We now consider

a certain volume V· of the interface region, given by the surface area A
and the interface thickness t (Fig.3.1). We allow the volume to be changed
into V8+dV8 by an area change to A+dA and a thickness change to t+dt
with the material content remaining unaltered. The total work done by the
different forces during this volume change is

- pAdt - (pt-1)dA = - p(Adt+tdA) + '1 dA = - pdVs + '1 dA . (3.2)

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