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Single-Molecule Diffusion and Assembly on Polymer-Crowded Lipid Membranes
Published on: July 19, 2022
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Island nucleation and growth with anomalous diffusion.
Jacques G Amar1, Mikhael Semaan1,2
1Department of Physics & Astronomy, University of Toledo, Toledo, Ohio 43606, USA.
Physical Review. E
|July 15, 2016
Summary
This study explores island nucleation and growth beyond standard monomer diffusion, introducing general expressions for various diffusion behaviors (μ). Results align with kinetic Monte Carlo simulations across different dimensions.
Area of Science:
- Surface science and condensed matter physics.
- Investigating nanoscale phenomena and material growth dynamics.
Background:
- Most island nucleation studies assume ordinary monomer diffusion (μ=1).
- Subdiffusive (μ<1) and superdiffusive (μ>1) diffusion behaviors can occur, impacting growth dynamics.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop general expressions for island and monomer densities under varying diffusion exponents (μ).
- To analyze the flux dependence of nucleation and growth across different substrate dimensions and critical island sizes.
Main Methods:
- Derivation of general scaling exponents for island nucleation and growth.
- Kinetic Monte Carlo (KMC) simulations for irreversible island growth (i=1).
- Validation across multiple substrate dimensions (d=1, 2, 3, and 4) and diffusion exponents (0≤μ≤2).
Main Results:
- General expressions for flux-dependent island and monomer densities were derived.
- Excellent agreement was found between theoretical results and KMC simulations.
- The study covers a broad range of diffusion behaviors (0≤μ≤2) and substrate dimensions.
Conclusions:
- The presented framework accurately describes island nucleation and growth for various diffusion regimes.
- This work extends the understanding of surface processes beyond the ordinary diffusion assumption.
- The findings are applicable to diverse systems exhibiting anomalous diffusion during thin film growth.
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