Epitaxial growth of Cr ultrathin films on vicinal and low index Mo(110) surfaces

The growth of ultrathin Cr films in the 0.15 ???4.6 ML coverage range on both vicinal and low index Mo(110) surfaces is studied at substrate temperatures between 400 and 600 K. The films grow pseudomorphically on both substrates by the step flow growth mechanism up to a coverage of at least 2.4 ML. Above this coverage, the films undergo a transition to Stranski?Krastanov growth. The transition is accompanied by strain release through the formation of a two dimensional dislocation network.