KINETIC ANISOTROPY AND DENDRITIC GROWTH IN ELECTROCHEMICAL DEPOSITION

It is shown that kinetic anisotropy stabilizes dendritic growth in electrochemical deposition of copper, and that in its absence the growth tips are unstable to splitting. The degree of anisotropy in the interfacial dynamics, which may be controlled through the chemistry of the electrolyte solution, was determined by the measurement of open-circuit potentials of single-crystal electrodes under nonequilibrium conditions. The experiments provide direct evidence that microscopic interfacial anisotropy in depositional growth stabilizes the dendritic morphology.