Molecular-dynamics study of surface segregation in liquid semiconductor alloys

We report the results of a molecular-dynamics study of the surface tension and surface profile of liquid Si and Ge (l-Si and l-Ge) and their alloys using empirical Stillinger-Weber potentials. The calculations are carried out at two temperatures slightly above the melting temperatures of Si and Ge and the alloys Si0.8Ge0.2 and Si0.2Ge0.8. They show clear evidence of surface segregation by Ge, the component with the lower surface tension.