A mathematical model of solid-state dewetting of barium thin films on W(112)

¹ Department of Mathematics, Ohio University, Athens, OH 45701, USA.
² Department of Physics and Astronomy, Ohio University, Athens, OH 45701, USA.
³ Center for Functional Nanomaterials, Brookhaven National Laboratory, Upton, NY 11973, USA.

^* Corresponding author: savin@ohio.edu

Received: 1 March 2019
Accepted: 13 September 2019

Abstract

Solid state dewetting occurs when a thin solid film is heated. The temperature of dewetting depends on the thickness of the film; dewetting can be observed in the range of 1∕3 to 1∕2 of the bulk melting temperature. While remaining solid, the film behaves in a manner similar to liquids dewetting and agglomerating to forming islands or droplets. One of the possible mechanisms is the conversion of a metastable thin film geometry into a more stable form. Heating the metastable film gives the film atoms higher mobility, and the films retract, dewetting the surface. This atomic motion can be restricted due to surface anisotropy. We present in situ emission microscopy observations of barium thin films deposited onto W(112) by thermal evaporation. From the modeling viewpoint, the evolution of the film in this system could be divided in four stages: (i) the nucleation and growth of the thin film as a simply connected region; (ii) formation of droplets/islands/hillocks; (iii) nucleation of holes; (iv) evolution of the components of the disconnected film to their equilibrium state. We present a continuum model that is qualitatively consistent with the evolution of the film observed at the initial stage of the experiment and discuss the later stages of the evolution of surface structures.