Abstract

Abstract Processes at dislocation sites are frequently predominant mechanisms of surface evaporation or growth and thus determine resulting surface morphologies. Dislocation-induced evaporation patterns are also a convenient object for observation of dynamics of step motion on crystal surfaces, as such patterns have “fixed” origins, being pinned at the point of dislocation emergence. In the present work, observations of evaporation spirals formed on ﹛111﹜ and ﹛001﹜ surfaces of MgAl2O4 spinel are reported. 2x2x1 mm samples of single-crystal MgAl2O4 spinel of ﹛111﹜ and ﹛001﹜ orientation were annealed in a spinel crucible in vacuum (10-4—10-5 Torr) in a Centorr™ furnace at 1800°C for 8 hours. SPM images were collected in air in contact mode on a Nanoscope III (Digital Instruments, Santa Barbara, CA), using Si3N4 cantilevers (Ultralevers, Park Inst., Sunnyvale, CA) with a nominal spring constant of 0.12 N/m. Selected sample surfaces were examined for impurities by energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray photoemission spectroscopy (XPS).

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