Monte Carlo study of the temperature dependence of domain-growth kinetics in a system with a nonconserved order parameter and a zero-temperature equilibration fixed point.

Abstract

We have investigated the relationship between the proportionality factor in the Lifschitz-Allen-Cahn scaling relation and the microscopic kinetics of nonequilibrium transport in a Monte Carlo model of domain growth in a two-dimensional, quenched, chemisorbed overlayer with a nonconserved order parameter and a zero-temperature equilibration fixed point. We have identified two components of the proportionality factor, which reflect the two temperature dependences of domain growth in this system. The primary temperature dependence arises from the rate of surface diffusion. In addition, we find a factor, \ensuremath{\alpha}, which decreases with increasing temperature due to the influence of thermal fluctuations. We also find that the proportionality factor has a time dependence, which arises from the rate of surface diffusion. We have found that this time dependence can influence the apparent form of the growth law. We discuss why the observed time dependence of diffusion should be a general phenomenon present in both simulations and experiments of domain growth in quenched systems.