Miscut angle

Figure 2 STM images of vicinals of Au ll0) (courtesy ofM.S. Hoogeman, L. Kuipers and J.W.M. Frenken, AMOLF Amsterdam). The area shown is 90nm x 20nm aX T = 550K, with a miscut angle of 0.07 degrees.

BOU Ola] BOULLE A., MASSON O., GUINEBRETIERE R., DAUGER A., Miscut angles measurement and precise sample positioning with a 5-axis diffractometer , Appl. Surf. ScL, vol. 180, p. 322-327,2001. 

Fig. 14 Typical set of / -t transients with Ei = 0.75 VjEi = 0.804 V for stepped Au(l 1 l).s crystals with various miscut angles (as indicated) in 0.05 M H2SO4. The solid lines represent calculated curves as obtained with the parameters of the numerical fit to an adsorption-nucleation model (cf Fig. 13), (reprinted from Ref. [299], copyright 1997 by VCH Verlagsgesellschaft mbH Weinheim).

Let us first consider a typical well-oriented Si(OOl) wafer with a miscut angle ( vicinal angle ) of only a = 0.5°. With monoatomic steps, that is, their height d is equal to the distance d = ao,si/4 = 1.36 A between subsequent (001) layers, the average separation between two neighboring steps is F = ao,si/4 tana = 156 A. This corresponds to 40 surface lattice constants asi(ioo). that is, about 2.5% of the surface atoms belong to step edges. 

Figure 3.2.2.30 Surface geometries of two vicinal Cu(lll) surfaces (a) Cu(221) and (b) Cu(332). Miscut angles are 15.97° and 10.02°, respectively, defined as the angles between the mean (optical) surface normal and the normal to the (111) terraces (top...

RHEED can measure film stress state, surface reconstruction, surface roughness, can count monolayers deposited, surface miscut angle, and other phenomena. For deposition monitoring one sets up the diffraction in the off-Bragg condition such that alternate monolayers on the surface interfere destructively. 

---