Growth mechanism of Co-2×2 islands on Ag/Ge(111)-√3×√3 surface
Using STM, we have studied a mechanism of Co-2×2 island growth on Ag/Ge(111)-√3×√3 surface. The islands are found to have hcp structure and be oriented with (11–20) face. A model was inferred that the majority of them grow along [0001] crystallographic direction, which in STM images manifests itself by a lateral shift of Co atom rows in the topmost layer compared to that in underlying one.