Indium-induced layer-by-layer growth and suppression of twin formation in the homoepitaxial growth of Cu(111)

We have investigated the effect of In on the homoepitaxial growth of Cu(111) by means of surface x-ray diffraction. At the temperature range investigated (125-300 K), the growth on clean Cu occurs in a three-dimensional mode with the creation of twin crystallites over a small fraction of the total surface area. When the surface is precovered with a submonolayer amount of In, layer-by-layer growth is induced and the formation of twin crystallites is suppressed.