Theoretical Investigations of RHEED Oscillations

Abstract

Nowadays there is great interest in the application of reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED) to monitor the growth of ultra thin films. This popularity of RHEED arose from the discovery of RHEED intensity oscillations in the early eighties. Namely, it was experimentally found that if the growth of a material follows a layer-by-layer mode then regular oscillating changes in the intensity of the specular beam occur, and the period of the oscillations corresponds to the deposition of one atomic layer of the material. These findings are of great practical importance and consequently RHEED is an important experimental technique used in nanoscale engineering. Nevertheless, the basic question of why RHEED oscillation are observed still remains open. In the past the Philips group suggested that intensity oscillations are a consequence of periodic changes in the roughness of the surface. About the same time, the University of Minnesota group claimed that during the growth the electron wave is reflected by two terraces (in an idealised case) and periodic changes of the interference conditions imply RHEED oscillation.