Molecular growth determined by surface domain patterns

The growth of iron phthalocyanine (FePc) on InSb(001) c(8 x 2) at submonolayer coverage has been investigated with scanning tunneling microscopy (STM). FePc adsorbs flat centered on the In rows both at 70 K and at room temperature (RT). However, the shapes of the two-dimensional molecular islands are fundamentally different; while the RT growth results in chainlike structures along the [I 10] direction, as already observed for other Pc's adsorbed on the same surface, the islands are prolonged along [110], i.e., perpendicular to the substrate rows, at 70 K. These observations are explained on the basis of a recently observed new surface phase at low temperature, resulting in structural domains on the surface. The molecular growth front follows the propagating domain boundary that freezes at low temperature.