Abstract
The evolution of surface roughness and morphology in epitaxial Si and $Si_{0.7}Ge{0.3}$ alloys grown by UHV opm-beam sputter deposition onto nominally-singular, [100]-, and [110]-mi-scut Si(001) was investigated by stomic force microscopy and trasmission electron microscopy. The evolution of surface roughness of epitaxial Si films grown at $300^{\circ}C$ is inconsistent with conventional scaling and hyperscaling laws for kineti roughening. Unstable growth leading to the formation of mounds separated by a well-defined length scale is observed on all substrates. Contraty to previous high-temperature growth results, the presence of steps during deposition at $300^{\circ}C$ increases the tendency toward unstable growth resulting in a much earlier development of mound structures and larger surface roughnesses on vicival substrates. Strain-induced surface roughening was found to dominate in $Si_{0.7}Ge{0.3}$ alloys grown on singular Si(001) substrates at $T_S\ge450^{\circ}C$ where the coherent islands are prererentially bounded along <100> directions and eshibt {105} facetting. Increasing the film thickness above critical values for strain relaxation leads to island coalescence and surface smoothening. At very low growth temperatures ($T_s\le 250^{\circ}C$), film surfaces roughen kinetically, due to limited adatom diffusiviry, but at far lower rates than in the higher-temperature strain-induced regime. There is an intermediate growth temperature range, however, over which alloy film surfaces remain extremely smooth even at thicknesses near critical values for strain relaxation.