The surface diffusion characteristics of thin films which had been grown, by means of molecular beam epitaxy, onto tilted (001) SrTiO3 substrates were investigated by using in situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction and atomic force microscopy. Periodic intensity oscillations which corresponded to half-unit layer-by-layer growth were observed for low growth temperatures and high growth rates. Periodic oscillations disappeared with increasing growth temperature and/or decreasing growth rate. A decrease in reflection high-energy electron diffraction oscillations indicated that the growth mode changed, from 2-dimensional nucleation growth, to a step-flow mode.

T.Ishibashi, Y.Okada, M.Kawabe: Japanese Journal of Applied Physics - 2, 1994, 33[6A], L763-5