Measuring the surface stress polar dependence

J. J Métois (1) , A. Saul (1) , P. Muller (2)

1 CINaM - Centre Interdisciplinaire de Nanoscience de Marseille
2 IEMN - Institut d’Électronique, de Microélectronique et de Nanotechnologie - UMR 8520

Although measurements of the polar dependence of the surface free energy are easily available, measurements of the whole polar dependence of the surface stress of a crystal do not exist. Here, we present a procedure that allows the experimental determination of this dependence. For this purpose, electromigration was used to control the kinetic faceting of surface orientations that belong to the equilibrium shape of the crystal, and for each destabilized surface, the period of faceting as well as the crystallographic angles of the appearing facets were measured by atomic force microscopy. The data obtained lead to a set of equations whose mathematical solution, compatible with physical constraints, gives access to the surface stress polar dependence of the whole crystal, and thus to a better understanding of surface stress properties.

Domaines: Physique [physics]; Matière Condensée [cond-mat]

J. J Métois, A. Saul, P. Muller. Measuring the surface stress polar dependence. Nature Materials, 2005, 4 (3), pp.238-242. ⟨10.1038/nmat1328⟩. ⟨hal-01967005⟩