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The impact of tailor-made inhibitors, that is, additives with horizontal and downward bonds similar to the growth units but with weaker or repelling b...
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J. Phys. Chem. C 2008, 112, 6380-6389

“Tailor-Made” Inhibitors in Crystal Growth: A Monte Carlo Simulation Study Willem J. P. van Enckevort* and Jan H. Los IMM Solid State Chemistry, Radboud UniVersity Nijmegen, ToernooiVeld 1, 6525 ED Nijmegen, The Netherlands ReceiVed: October 12, 2007; In Final Form: February 14, 2008

The impact of tailor-made inhibitors, that is, additives with horizontal and downward bonds similar to the growth units but with weaker or repelling bonds upward, on the growth and etching of crystals is studied. Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations applied to the {001} face of the solid-on-solid Kossel crystal are used. For thermally roughened faces, the measured reduction of growth rate as a function of inhibitor concentration and bond strength is described by a simple analytical model, considering an averaged blocking efficiency for each inhibitor molecule adsorbed on the crystal surface. In contrast to the rough faces, for flat faces, growth kinetics is no longer linear, and a dead supersaturation zone develops, where growth is almost blocked. The width of the dead zone as a function of step free energy and inhibitor concentration in the mother phase largely follows Cabrera and Vermilyea’s theory of step pinning by adsorbed impurities. Concentration measurements show that the fraction of inhibitor molecules incorporated into the crystal lattice increases for increasing supersaturation up to a maximum value at the end of the dead zone, after which it diminishes again. Etching of flat faces again reveals nonlinear kinetics and the presence of a dead undersaturation zone, where etching is prohibited. This observation is explained using a one-dimensional model, in which the process of etching is considered as a stripping off of surface steps by kink propagation in the presence of inhibitor molecules.

1. Introduction Additives and impurities often have a major impact on the growth of crystals. The history goes back to 1783, when Rome´ de l’Isle showed that octahedrons instead of normal cubes are formed if rock salt is grown in the presence of urea.1,2 Since the publication of the monograph in 1951 by Buckley,3 who carried out extensive morphologic studies of many crystals grown in the presence of additives, the issue has received much attention in the literature; see, for example, refs 4-7. An important group of additives are the so-called “tailor-made” inhibitors, which retard or obstruct the growth of specific crystal faces because of selective adsorption.8-11 This leads to changes of crystal morphology. By careful selection of additives with a molecular structure similar to the structure of the corresponding crystal molecules, the shape of the crystal can be controlled. Morphological crystal engineering using additives is of great importance in the fields of industrial crystallization12 and biomineralization. Additives are molecules that are added intentionally to the mother liquor to influence the crystal growth, whereas impurities are unintended compounds in the system. As we shall concentrate on units that retard crystal growth, we shall refer to both the additive and the impurity molecules as “inhibitors” in this paper. The basic concept of a tailor-made inhibitor is displayed in Figure 1a. The inhibitor molecule is very similar to the other molecules in the crystal surface, that is, the horizontal and downward bonds are more or less identical. However, the top face of this molecule contains a larger group, which makes the top-bond energy low or even negative as a result of a strong * To whom correspondence should be addressed. Phone +31 24 3653433. Fax: +31 24 3653067. E-mail: [email protected].

Figure 1. Tailor-made inhibitors. (a) Basic concept, with horizontal and downward bonds, φ/kT, similar to those of the crystal bulk and a weak or repulsive bond, φihb/kT, upward. (b) Three different inhibitor types are used in the simulations. Type I, φihb/kT ) finite: growth can take place on top of the inhibitor molecule; Type II, φihb/kT ) -∞: growth only occurs if the inhibitor molecule is released; Type III, φihb/ kT ) -∞: same as II, but now a vacancy, V, is allowed to be formed on top of the inhibitor molecule.

steric repulsion between the inhibitor molecule and a growth unit on top of it. As a consequence, enclosure of an inhibitor unit into the crystal lattice is very unfavorable from an energetic point of view, and if the release of such a molecule embedded in the surface is slow, crystal growth will be retarded or even blocked. Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations have proven to be a powerful technique for studying crystal growth in general13-17 and, more specifically, crystallization in the presence of additives or impurities.18-20 In this study, we use this technique to investigate the effects of tailor-made inhibitors on the growth and dissolu-

10.1021/jp7099543 CCC: $40.75 © 2008 American Chemical Society Published on Web 03/29/2008

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tion of the {001} face of the simple cubic Kossel crystal. Growth and dissolution rates, inhibitor surface coverage, and inhibitor incorporation into the bulk lattice are measured as a function of super(under)saturation, (inhibitor) bond strength, and inhibitor concentration in the mother phase. Both flat and thermally roughened faces are considered. The results are interpreted in terms of semiquantitative mean field models. 2. The Monte Carlo Method As a model system for the Monte Carlo simulations, the {001} surface of a solid-on-solid (SOS) Kossel crystal is used.13,14,18 The size of the 2D array H(x,y) is L × M, with L ) 40 and M ) 20 for all simulations. The value of H(x,y) corresponds with the height of the crystal surface at position (x,y). Periodic boundary conditions H(L+1,y) ) H(1,y) - nst, H(0,y) ) H(L,y) + nst, H(x,M+1) ) H(x,1), and H(x,0) ) H(x,M) are imposed; nst is the number of steps that are parallel to y. For a clean system without impurities, we used the same frequencies for addition, P+ i , and removal, Pi , of particles to/ from the surface as proposed by Gilmer and Bennema.13,21 In this “random rain” model, P+ i ) ν exp(∆µ/kT) and Pi ) ν exp[(2 - i)2φ/kT], with i ) 0-4. In these probabilities, ν is a characteristic, fixed frequency depending on the system under consideration, and i is the number of horizontal solid neighbors. The effective bond strength, φ, is defined as φ ) φsf - 0.5(φss + φff), with φss, φff, and φsf the bond energy between two neighboring solid units, two fluid molecules, and a solid and fluid molecule, respectively.21,22 The driving force for crystallization is given by the difference in chemical potential per growth unit in the fluid, µf, and in the solid phase, µs, that is, ∆µ/kT ) (µf - µs)/kT, with k the Boltzmann constant and T the temperature. No surface diffusion is assumed. In the present investigation, three kinds of inhibitors are considered, which are schematized in Figure 1b. All three types have horizontal and downward bonds that are identical to that of the regular growth units. Further, no inhibitor molecule can be placed on top of another inhibitor unit. In contrast to a previous Monte Carlo study,18 now, the inhibitors are not fixed prior to the simulation experiment but can adhere to or detach from the surface randomly during growth. This makes the situation more realistic. The first kind of inhibitor (type-I in Figure 1b) has a finite, mostly negative upward bond energy, so that it tends to repel growth units on top of it. This reduces the growth rate and inhibitor incorporation. The probabilities for addition and removal of growth and inhibitor units are

P+ i ) ν exp(∆µ/kT ) Pi

) ν exp{[(2 - i)2φ - 2∆φ]/kT }

(1a) (1b)

+ ) fν/(1 - f ) Pi,ihb

(1c)

Pi,ihb ) ν exp[(2 - i)2φ/kT ]

(1d)

+ In these equations, Pi,ihb and Pi,ihb are the frequencies for attachment and removal of inhibitor units, and i is the total number of horizontally neighboring growth plus inhibitor units. Further, f is the fraction of inhibitor molecules in the fluid phase at ∆µ ) 0. (For the experimentalist, this implies that he first prepares a supersaturated solution at a given temperature and then adds the inhibitor compound with fraction f of the equilibrium concentration at that temperature.) Then, for f )

+ 0.5, that is, equal fractions, P+ i ) Pi,ihb ) ν, as it should be. If a growth unit is located on top of an inhibitor unit, ∆φ ) (φihb - φ); if not, then ∆φ ) 0. Here, φihb is the effective bond strength of the vertical bond connecting a growth unit on top of an inhibitor, which is generally negative for tailor-made inhibitors. The type-II inhibitors are similar to the first type, except that φihb ) -∞. Effectively, this implies that no growth unit can be placed on top of an inhibitor. Addition has to be postponed until the foreign unit has released from the crystal surface. In this case, the steric repulsion is so large that no inhibitor will be incorporated into the crystal lattice. The frequencies for attachment and release are now

P+ i ) ν exp(∆µ/kT) if no inhibitor below, else P+ i ) 0 (2a) Pi ) ν exp[(2 - i)2φ/kT]

(2b)

+ ) fν/(1 - f ) Pi,ihb

(2c)

Pi,ihb ) ν exp[(2 - i)2φ/kT]

(2d)

For large bond strengths φ/kT, the inhibitor molecules are firmly embedded in the crystal surface and only release with much difficulty. This leads to unrealistic situations for φihb ) -∞. In reality, a vacancy will be formed on top of the inhibitor, leading to the formation of inhibitor-vacancy pairs in the crystal lattice. Therefore, a third type of inhibitor is introduced with the following frequencies

if no inhibitor below P+ i ) ν exp(∆µ/kT) If an inhibitor molecule is below and one or more horizontal nearest neighbors exist for position H(x,y) + 2, then a vacancy is created at H(x,y) + 1, and a growth unit is placed on top of it, that is, at H(x,y) + 2 with the same probability P+ i . If no horizontal neighbors are present for H(x,y) + 2, then no addition will take place. (3a) + Pi,ihb ) fν/(1 - f ) Further, the same restrictions apply as those for adding a growth unit. (3b) Pi ) Pi,ihb ) ν exp[(2 - i)2φ/kT]

Pi

if no vacancy below Pi,ihb

) ) If a vacancy is below, then ν exp{[(2 - i) + 1]2φ/kT} (no vertical bond downward!), and the vacancy is removed as well. (3c,d) For the type-I inhibitor, the growth system is defined by four variables: φ/kT, φihb/kT, ∆µ/kT, and f . For the other two cases, the system is ruled by only three variables: φ/kT, ∆µ/kT, and f . Further, the SOS condition is strict for the first two cases, whereas for model III, this restriction is slightly relaxed. Type-I inhibitors are a good approximation for those cases where the inhibitor effect, that is, |φihb/kT - φ/kT|, is relatively weak. If this difference in bond strength is large, then type-II and -III inhibitors describe reality better. Type-II inhibitors are relevant if the solvent molecules are too large to fill vacancy sites. Then, the vacancy surface energy is large as compared to φ/kT, and vacancies are not easily formed. If the vacancy surface

6382 J. Phys. Chem. C, Vol. 112, No. 16, 2008 energy is on the same order as φ/kT, vacancies develop more easily, and the type-III inhibitors come into view. This occurs for vapor-solid growth and for solution growth, where solvent molecules can fill the vacancy sites. Apart from the 2D SOS matrix H(x,y), a three-dimensional matrix ℵ(x,y,z) is used to store and identify the positions of the inhibitor units and vacancies on top as well as in the bulk of the crystal. The elements of ℵ(x,y,z) can have four states: “fluid”, “solid”, “inhibitor”, or “vacancy”. The size of the 3D array is L × M × N, with L ) 40, M ) 20, and N ) 55; therefore, up to 55 layers can be grown or dissolved during a simulation run. Due to the roughness of the surface, a typical run comprises 30 layers of growth or dissolution. The number of steps nst is eight for thermally nonroughened surfaces (φ/kT > 0.8) and zero otherwise (φ/kT e 0.8). The sticking fraction of growth units, S, is used as a measure for the growth rate. This property is defined as S ) (N+ - N-)/ N+, where N+ is the total number of additions of growth units, which is a measure for time,13,21 and N- is the number of removals. For growth from a supersaturated solution or the gas phase, where c/ceq ) exp(∆µ/kT), with c and ceq as the actual and equilibrium solute concentrations, the actual growth rate is R ) S(1 + θi + θv)exp(∆µ/kT). For smaller driving forces and limited bulk inhibitor and vacancy fractions, θi and θv, respectively, in the solid phase, R = S. In addition to the sticking fraction, the two other properties that are measured during a Monte Carlo experiment are the inhibitor surface coverage, θs, and the already mentioned θi (and θv). The surface coverage is the fraction of surface sites occupied by an inhibitor molecule. As concerns bulk solid fractions, for the type-II inhibitors θi ) 0 as a consequence of the SOS condition, and for case III, the vacancy concentration equals the inhibitor bulk concentration, that is, θv ) θi. Because the growth rate and other system properties converge to their final value after a certain amount of simulation time, prior to each run, the system is relaxed over a number of Monte Carlo cycles until a steady state is achieved. The simulation program is written in C, and the calculations are carried out on several 700 MHz and 2 GHz Pentium PCs. 3. Thermally Roughened Faces: Growth 3.1. Sticking Fraction and Inhibitor Segregation. In essence, crystals can grow in two modes, flat or rough.22,23 In the flat mode, a crystal surface grows layer by layer, involving the propagation of monomolecular or higher steps. This slowest mode of crystal growth occurs for F faces22,24-27 that are neither thermally nor kinetically rough. Roughened F faces, as well as K and S faces,22,24-27 grow fast by random addition of growth units. Here, no nucleation barrier exists for the addition of new layers and the growth rate is proportional to the supersaturation. For the {001} face of the Kossel crystal, thermal roughening occurs at values of φ/kT below ≈ 0.78.28 Figure 2 shows the sticking fraction as a function of driving force for the three inhibitor types and several (φ/kT)ihb values for a rough {001} Kossel face at φ/kT ) 0.7 and f ) 0.2. In all of the cases displayed, as well as for other parameter values, the growth rate departs linearly from zero when going from ∆µ ) 0, that is, (dS/d∆µ/kT)∆µ/kTf0 * 0. We never observed a “dead” supersaturation zone4,18,29 for the present type of inhibitors on a thermally roughened Kossel face. Figure 2 also shows that the tailor-made inhibitors are not very effective in reducing sticking fractions of rough faces. For f ) 0.2, the largest retardation factor that we observed was only 2.4; this was found for (φ/kT)ihb ) -∞ without vacancy formation.

van Enckevort and Los

Figure 2. Sticking fraction as a function of supersaturation for a thermally roughened face at φ/kT ) 0.7 and f ) 0.2. Three different inhibitor types are used. For type I, φihb/kT ) 0.0 and -1.0, and for the other two types, φihb/kT ) -∞. The dotted line represents the S versus ∆µ/kT curve for the type-I inhibitor with φihb/kT ) 0 but now with its origin (S ) 0) shifted to ∆µ/kT ) 0.

Figure 2 also reveals that for the type-I inhibitor with the lower ∆φ/kT ) -0.7 (that is, (φ/kT)ihb ) 0) value, the sticking fraction versus supersaturation curve is shifted to the left and its equilibrium point, S ) 0, is moved to negative ∆µ/kT. This is a consequence of the easy incorporation of these inhibitor molecules into the bulk phase (Figure 3b), which leads to a higher mixing entropy of the solid phase and thus to a lower value of its thermodynamic potential in the solid, µs. This makes the actual driving force, ∆µ ) µf - µs, higher. Here, we enter the realm of mixed crystals, of which the thermodynamic properties are detailed in refs 30-32. Figure 3 displays the inhibitor and vacancy concentration in the solid as a function of the fraction of inhibitor molecules in the fluid phase (Figure 3a) and the supersaturation (Figure 3b). First of all, it can be seen that θi is proportional to f (for φ/kT ) 0.4 only for lower f ), that is, the segregation coefficient K ) θi/f is independent of additive content. On the other hand, the segregation coefficient depends strongly on supersaturation. At the lowest supersaturations, crystal growth is slow, and since the inhibitor units are loosely bonded by their rather weak horizontal and downward (φ/kT e 0.78) bonds, there is sufficient time for the inhibitor units to release from the surface, and equilibrium bulk concentrations can be attained. From the graph in Figure 3b, it can be inferred that for type-I inhibitors with (φ/kT)ihb ) 0 and type-III inhibitors with (φ/kT)ihb ) -∞, the inhibitor bulk fraction goes to 0.065 and 4 × 10-3, respectively if ∆µ/kT f 0. These values are not very different from the equilibrium bulk fractions, which, in a simple eq approximation, are θeq i,I ) f exp(+2∆φ/kT) ) 0.049 and θi,III ) -3 f exp(-6φ/kT) ) 3 × 10 . The 6φ in the second equation represents the vacancy formation energy. If the supersaturation increases, the time for inhibitor release is not sufficient, and growth units are easily added on top of the foreign molecules, which leads to an increase of θi. This increase is shown in Figure 3b for φ/kT ) 0.7 and f ) 0.2. At the highest supersaturations, however, θi goes down again, which is explained by the + /P+ decreasing ratio of the attachment frequencies, Pi,ihb i , for increasing ∆µ/kT. 3.2. Surface Coverage and Blocking Efficiency. Figure 4 shows the surface coverage and sticking fraction as a function of the fraction of type-II inhibitors in the fluid phase for different bond strengths φ/kT. The supersaturation was kept at ∆µ/kT ) 0.2. From Figure 4a, it is clear that θs = f for the two cases shown; similar results were obtained for the other two impurity

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Figure 3. Inhibitor fraction in the solid phase and surface coverage as a function of (a) inhibitor fraction in the fluid phase and (b) supersaturation. In (a) type-I (φihb/kT ) -1.0) and type-III inhibitors are used at ∆µ/kT ) 0.2 and φ/kT ) 0.4 and 0.7; in (b) type-I (φihb/kT ) 0.0) and type-III inhibitors are used at φ/kT ) 0.7 and f ) 0.2.

Figure 4. Surface coverage (a) and sticking fraction (b) as a function of inhibitor fraction in the fluid phase, for rough faces with φ/kT ranging from 0.25 to 0.80. Type-II inhibitors are used; the supersaturation is kept at ∆µ/kT ) 0.2.

types, as well as for different φ/kT and ∆µ/kT (Figure 3a). If we neglect the number of inhibitor units that are incorporated into the lattice, then the average number of inhibitors added to the surface equals that of the removed ones, or ) < + >. Since

) (1 θ P)( f ν/(1 f ) and taking ) θsν (surface coverage times the rate of removal from a kink site), we obtain θs ) f , which agrees with the Monte Carlo results. Figure 4b displays the sticking fraction for growth with typeII inhibitors as a function of f at ∆µ/kT ) 0.2 for different φ/kT. Similar results were obtained for the type-III inhibitors. As for not too high values of ∆µ/kT, S is proportional to ∆µ/kT, that is, S ) β∆µ/kT; the kinetic coefficient β can be deduced as a function of f and φ/kT. Excellent fits, shown in Figure 4b, were obtained for S using the empirical equation β ) β0 + β1 exp(-bf); for all φ/kT e 0.8, the R-square value of the fit is g0.99. Values of β0, β1, and b as a function of φ/kT are given in Figure 5. From this figure, it is evident that β0 is rather small; therefore, the function can be approximated as β ) β1 exp(-bf), where β1 is the kinetic coefficient in the absence of inhibitors and b is a blocking efficiency factor. This simplified expression can be derived if we assume that each adsorbed inhibitor blocks crystal growth on an average surface area b. The value of b does not necessarily correspond to the area of the growth unit that is covered by the additive; it can be larger as the inhibitor also partly “protects” the surface around. The surface area protected by m adsorbed inhibitors per unit surface area is s(m). Crystal growth can only take place

Figure 5. Fitting parameters, β0, β1, and b in S ) [β0 + β1 exp(-bf)] obtained from the S versus f curves in Figure 4b as a function of the bond strength φ/kT. (Type-II inhibitors, ∆µ/kT ) 0.2.)

on unprotected surface regions, u(m), the total surface area being s(m) + u(m) ) 1. Therefore, if inhibitors are adsorbed on the surface, the growth rate is S ) u(m)β1∆µ/kT, and the kinetic coefficient becomes β ) β1u(m). The change of protected surface area with the number of adsorbed inhibitors is given by

ds(m) ) b(1 - s(m)) dm

(4)

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Figure 6. Embedding of inhibitor units into the growing crystal surface via the kink (k) f step (st) f surface (su) positions.

where the second term in the right-hand part of this equation accounts for the overlap of protected areas. Substituting s(m) ) (1 - u(m)) gives

du(m) ) bu(m) dm

-

(5)

Solving this differential equation with the boundary condition u(m)0) ) 1 results in

u(m) ) exp(-bm)

(6)

and gives a kinetic constant of

β ) β1u(m) ) β1 exp(-bm)

(7)

Since in our case the surface area of an inhibitor unit is identical to that of a growth unit and taking the surface area of both units as the unit surface area, m is identical to the surface coverage θs, and b is the average number of growth units that are protected. Since for the rough faces θs = f , we finally come to

β ) β1 exp(-bf)

(8)

as was found by the Monte Carlo experiment. From the graph in Figure 5, it can be seen that for the lowest φ/kT ) 0.25, an adsorbed type-II inhibitor only “protects” two surface molecules, whereas for φ/kT ) 0.8, it “protects” the molecule below plus 11 neighbors. 4. Flat Faces 4.1. General. The {001} surfaces of the Kossel crystal grow layer-wise via steps if φ/kT g 0.8 and ∆µ/kT is less than the transition value for kinetic roughening.22,33 Then, the tailor-made inhibitors are not randomly incorporated into the crystal lattice but are preferentially incorporated via kink sites at the steps. These kink positions become step positions and finally surface positions upon further growth.34 This is shown in Figure 6. Once it has arrived at a surface position, with four horizontal and one vertical bond, the inhibitor is firmly embedded in the surface and is capable of retarding or pinning the step behind. Figure 7a shows the sticking fraction as a function of bond energy φ/kT for the three inhibitor types at ∆µ/kT ) 0.2 and fraction f ) 0.2. As compared to the clean case (without inhibitors), the growth rate decreases much faster for increasing φ/kT if inhibitors are added (note the logarithmic scale on the vertical axis). This implies that the effect of the tailor-made inhibitors increases rapidly with bond strength. Figure 7b gives the surface coverage, inhibitor ()vacancy) bulk concentration, and the sticking fraction ratio of the inhibited and clean surface as a function of φ/kT for the type-III inhibitors, again at ∆µ/kT

) 0.2 and f ) 0.2. From this figure, it can be inferred that in contrast to the sticking fraction ratio and inhibitor concentration, the surface coverage does not change much with φ/kT. In fact, θs ≈ f , similar as for the rough faces. Growth is retarded to a limited extent at lower values of φ/kT because there is sufficient time for the relatively weakly bonded inhibitors to release from their embedded surface positions. On the other hand, for larger φ/kT, the inhibitors are firmly attached to the surface, and especially for the type-II and -III inhibitors, step propagation gets almost completely blocked, and the crystal growth rate decreases several orders of magnitude. There is no sudden change in the dependence of S, θs, or θi ) θv on φ/kT upon going from rough to flat growth around φ/kT ≈ 0.8. Further, no evidence for step bunching was found during our simulations, as has been reported earlier for different kinds of impurities.35-38 For large φ/kT and lower driving force, the type-II and typeIII inhibitors behave similarly; they block crystal growth almost completely. However, at high ∆µ/kT, the sticking fraction does not attain a stationary value for the type-II case. Initially, growth proceeds rapidly, but in due time, it gradually slows down. Figure 8a shows the surface morphology after a growth run with type-II additives under such conditions (φ/kT ) 2.0; f ) 0.2; ∆µ/kT ) 2.5). The surface is very rough and is composed of many deep holes with an inhibitor molecule at the bottom. The impurity remains firmly anchored, and because of the SOS condition, it does not allow for deposition of growth units on top of it. This situation is not realistic. In practice, a vacancy will be formed above the inhibitor. This is modeled by the typeIII additives, which indeed give a constant growth rate after an initial period of relaxation. In addition, a realistic surface morphology (flat with steps) is obtained, as shown in Figure 8b. We therefore only consider type-III inhibitors in the remaining part of this section. 4.2. Dead Supersaturation Zone. Figure 9 shows the sticking fraction, surface coverage, and bulk fraction as a function of driving force for the type-III inhibitor. Figure 9a displays the results for φ/kT ) 1.2 and Figure 9b for φ/kT ) 2.0. In both cases, f ) 0.2. In contrast to the clean case as well as for the rough surfaces, no or very slow growth occurs for the lowest supersaturation values, that is, (dS/d(∆µ/kT))∆µf0 = 0, despite the presence of growth steps. Raising the supersaturation beyond this dead supersaturation zone of no growth leads to a gradual increase in sticking fraction, which eventually becomes linear with supersaturation, S ∝[∆µ/kT - (∆µ/kT)*]. We here define the width of the dead zone, (∆µ/kT)*, as that value of supersaturation at which the extrapolated linear growth curve intersects S ) 0 (see also Figure 9). The width of the no-growth region increases for increasing bond energies, being (∆µ/kT)* ) 0.64 for φ/kT ) 1.2 and (∆µ/kT)* = 1.3 for φ/kT ) 2. The width of the dead zone as a function of the fraction of inhibitor molecules in the fluid phase is summarized in Figure 10. Figure 10a displays several S versus ∆µ/kT curves for φ/kT ) 2, using f values ranging from 0 to 0.2, whereas Figure 10b shows the dependence of log[(∆µ/kT)*], abstracted from the graph in Figure 10a, on log(f ). The log-log plot is linear and corresponds to (∆µ/kT)* ) 3.14 × f 0.65. The occurrence of a dead supersaturation zone induced by impurities has been reported for many crystal growth systems,4 such as KH2PO4,39,40 paraffin,5,6 and K2Cr2O741 growing from solution. Cabrera and Vermilyea29 put forward an explanation for this phenomenon as early as 1958. They assumed that propagating steps are pinned by immobile impurities adsorbed

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Figure 7. Effects of tailor-made inhibitors as a function of bond strength φ/kT (∆µ/kT ) 0.2; f ) 0.2). (a) Sticking fraction for growth in the presence of the three types of inhibitors as compared to that for a clean surface; (b) sticking fraction ratio of the inhibited and clean surface, inhibitor ()vacancy) concentration, and surface coverage for growth in the presence of type-III inhibitors.

Figure 8. Surface morphologies obtained at a large bond strength and high supersaturation for (a) type-II and (b) type-III inhibitors. In both cases, φ/kT ) 2.0, ∆µ/kT ) 2.5, and f ) 0.2. Grey spheres are growth units; red spheres are inhibitor units.

Figure 9. Sticking fraction, surface coverage, and inhibitor fraction in the solid phase as a function of driving force for nonroughened faces growing in the presence of type-III inhibitors: (a) φ/kT ) 1.2, (b) φ/kT ) 2.0.

on the crystal surface. If the supersaturation is less than a critical value

(∆µ/kT )* ) CΩ2/3

γ 1/2 θ kT imp

(9)

then the steps are not able to pass the fence of adsorbed impurities, and crystal growth is blocked. In this equation, C is a constant, which is 2 for a square array of impurities29,42 and

1.51 for randomly distributed impurities.43 Further, Ω is the volume of one growth unit, and γ/kT is the dimensionless step free energy per unit step length, Ω1/3. For φ/kT ) 2, this step free energy equals 1.728, as follows from eq 5 in ref 16. The θimp is the surface concentration of the immobile impurities (i.e., the number of impurities per unit surface area, Ω2/3), which, in our case, are those inhibitor units that are embedded in the surface with four horizontal neighbors (“su” in Figure 6). For

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Figure 10. Width of the dead zone as a function of inhibitor concentration in the fluid phase for type-III inhibitors and bond strength φ/kT ) 2.0. (a) Sticking fraction against supersaturation for various inhibitor concentrations, f . The linear curve for f ) 0 represents the growth of a clean surface. (b) Log-log plot of the dependence of the critical supersaturation, (∆µ/kT)*, on inhibitor fraction, f . The two dashed lines are calculated values according to eq 10 using γ/kT ) 1.728, Ω ) 1, and a ) 1.0 and 0.65.

a bond strength of φ/kT ) 2, the total number of adsorbed inhibitors at (∆µ/kT)* is somewhat less than their fraction in the fluid phase, f . In addition, visual inspection of the grown surfaces showed that virtually all of the inhibitors are located at the above-mentioned immobile positions. Therefore, we can take θs ) a‚f , with the proportionality constant a somewhat less than one. Using eq 9, this gives an estimated theoretical relation

(∆µ/kT )* ) 1.5Ω2/3

γ 1/2 1/2 a f kT

(10)

As shown in Figure 10b, a reasonable though not perfect agreement of eq 10 with the Monte Carlo data is obtained by taking γ/kT ) 1.728, Ω ) 1, and a ) 1. The differences are likely due to the rather crude assumptions that are made in deriving the Cabrera and Vermilyea model and its application to the present case. A better fit is obtained for the smaller value of a ) 0.65. 4.3. Segregation. It is evident from Figure 9 that the concentration of type-III inhibitors incorporated into the grown crystal increases for increasing supersaturations up to a maximum value at (∆µ/kT)*. Beyond the dead supersaturation zone, that is, for ∆µ/kT > (∆µ/kT)*, θi ) θv decreases on the same footing as the surface coverage, or

- B(θ/s - θs) θi ) θv = θmax i

(11)

In this equation, θ/s is the surface fraction at (∆µ/kT)*, which is slightly less than the inhibitor concentration in the fluid phase, f , and B is a proportionality constant. The maximum inhibitor at the point of turnover at (∆µ/kT)* is concentration, θmax i approximately proportional to f , as depicted in Figure 11. The much smaller low inhibitor bulk fractions for ∆µ/kT than those for (∆µ/kT)* are explained by the fact that steps are completely blocked by the adsorbed inhibitors. A step can only propagate if the inhibitor molecules in front of it are released. Then, some growth can take place, but no or only a few inhibitor molecules will be incorporated. At higher supersaturation, the steps can pass the blocking centers and a large part of the adsorbed inhibitors are readily built into the crystal lattice. For the highest supersaturation, ∆µ/kT > (∆µ/kT)*, the surface and thus the bulk fraction of inhibitors decreases because the probability ratio of inhibitor attachment and growth unit

Figure 11. Maximal inhibitor ()vacancy) fraction in the solid phase, θmax ()θmax i v ), as a function of inhibitor fraction in the fluid, f , for type-III inhibitors at φ/kT ) 2.0.

attachment to the crystal surface decreases for increasing ∆µ/ + /P+ kT as Pi,ihb i ∝ exp(-∆µ/kT). 5. Etching On first sight, no dead undersaturation zone is expected for etching because inhibitor molecules embedded in the crystal surface are not expected to be able to retard or block step propagation significantly, as their rate of removal does not differ from the regular growth units. Looking at Figure 12a, one indeed expects that the etching velocity of a step with additives is very similar to that of a step on a clean surface. However, our simulations as well as experimental evidence reported in literature8,44,45 provide proof to the contrary. Figure 13 displays the measured negative sticking fractions, Sihb and Sno ihb of surfaces etched with and without additives as a function of driving force for different bond strengths φ/kT ) 0.7, 1.2, and 2.0 and f ) 0.2. In these simulations, a “clean” bulk crystal is etched. Type II-inhibitors are used. For etching, type-II inhibitors give the same results as type-III inhibitors, as no inhibitor molecules, and thus also no vacancies, are incorporated into the crystal lattice. In all cases, the sticking fraction ratio, RSF ) Sihb/Sno ihb, is less than 1 and is lowest for low |∆µ/kT|. For the rough surface (φ/kT ) 0.7; Figure 13a), the inhibition effect is limited, and no dead undersaturation zone exists, that is, [d|Sihb|/ d|∆µ/kT|]|∆µ/kT|f0 * 0. For the two flat faces (φ/kT ) 1.2 and 2.0; Figure 13b and c), however, [d|Sihb|/d|∆µ/kT|]|∆µ/kT|f0 tends

“Tailor-Made” Inhibitors in Crystal Growth

J. Phys. Chem. C, Vol. 112, No. 16, 2008 6387

Figure 12. Etching of a flat crystal surface with steps in the presence of tailor-made inhibitors. (a) The propagation of steps proceeds by stripping off growth and inhibitor units from kink positions. (b) Etch rate versus undersaturation of a one-dimensional crystal in the presence of inhibitor molecules; a dead undersaturation zone develops, extending up to |∆µ/kT| ) -ln[1 - 1/(1 - f )].

to zero, despite the presence of steps. Now, a dead undersaturation zone develops, which is wider for the largest φ/kT. Therefore, in fact, the situation is not very different from growth. In all three cases, RSF increases for increasing undersaturation |∆µ/kT|, going toward (1 - f /(1 - f )), which is 0.75 for the f ) 0.2 used in the simulations. Another difference from growth is the early decrease of the inhibitor surface coverage for increasing |∆µ/kT|, which already sets in at low undersaturations. For φ/kT ) 2.0, this decrease is very fast for |∆µ/kT| g 0.25, which is just beyond the dead undersaturation zone. To show analytically that retardation and blocking of step propagation also occurs for dissolution, we resort to a simple one-dimensional model. Consider a step with kinks as displayed in Figure 12a. Step propagation proceeds by stripping off the step by kink removal, as indicated by the arrow. However, growth and inhibitor units are not only removed but can also be added to the kink position during dissolution. The frequency of adding growth units to a kink site is P+ k ) ν exp(-|∆µ/kT|), ) f‚ν/(1 - f ). The frequency and that of the inhibitors is P+ k,ihb of removal of growth units depends on the probability, θk, that an inhibitor molecule occupies the kink site, Pk ) ν(1 - θk). The frequency of inhibitor removal from the kink is Pk,ihb ) ν‚θk. As for etching, no inhibitors are incorporated into or released from the bulk crystal, P+ k,ihb ) Pk,ihb or θk ) f /(1 - f ). Therefore, the kink propagation rate, Rk ) P+ k - Pk , is

Rk( f,|∆µ/kT|) ) ν[exp(-|∆µ/kT |) + f/(1 - f ) - 1] (12)

Figure 13. The effect of tailor-made inhibitors on crystal etching. Negative sticking fraction, |S|, surface coverage, θs, and sticking fraction ratio of the inhibited and clean surface, RSF, as a function of undersaturation, |∆µ/kT|, for type-II inhibitors at f ) 0.2. (a) φ/kT ) 0.7; (b) φ/kT ) 1.2; (c) φ/kT ) 2.0.

will be embedded in the surface, and the step coming from behind will be pinned. Therefore, growth will be blocked for this lower undersaturation regime. From this simple model, we expect a dead zone width of |∆µ/kT|* ) -ln[1 - f/(1 - f )]. For f ) 0.2, this corresponds with |∆µ/kT|* ) 0.29, which is not far from the observed value of 0.25 for φ/kT ) 2.0. Inspection of the surfaces etched below this critical undersaturation value indeed shows that almost all of the adsorbed inhibitor molecules are embedded in the surface with four horizontal neighbors and thus are capable of blocking step growth. For the highest |∆µ/kT |, the sticking fraction ratio

which is slower than the rate in absence of additives

Rk( f)0,|∆µ/kT |) ) ν[exp(-|∆µ/kT |) - 1]

(13)

Both stripping rates are displayed schematically as a function of undersaturation in Figure 12b. Growth is expected to occur if |∆µ/kT| < -ln[1 -f /(1 - f )], but then, inhibitor molecules

RSF )

Rk( f,|∆µ/kT|)/P+ k

) Rk( f)0,|∆µ/kT|)/P+ k exp(-|∆µ/kT|) - 1 + f /(1 - f ) (14) exp(-|∆µ/kT|) - 1

goes to (1 - f /(1 - f )), which agrees with our observations.

6388 J. Phys. Chem. C, Vol. 112, No. 16, 2008 It should be realized that our 1D model is oversimplified and only gives a qualitative understanding of the, rather unexpected, behavior during crystal etching in the presence of tailor-made inhibitors. 6. Applicability The number of possible mechanisms of the action of different types of additives and impurities on the growth of different kinds of crystal surfaces is almost endless. In this paper, we concentrated on the “classical” tailor-made additives as introduced by the research group at the Weizmann Institute of Science in the 1980s8-10 and applied this concept to the {001} surface of the simple cubic Kossel crystal. However, the conclusions and the analytical expressions derived in our study also hold for “real” additive molecules, provided that the strengths of the horizontal and downward bonds are similar to those of the growth units in the crystal face and the upward bond is weak or repelling. As only nearest-neighbor interactions and no surface diffusion is assumed, our results are most suited for the solution growth of organic, protein, and other macromolecular crystals as well as for some inorganic crystals. Except for F faces with large bond energies, φ/kT, the growth retarding effect of the tailor-made inhibitors used in this study is relatively mild. This agrees with the pioneering studies by Berkovitch et al.,9 who used relatively large amounts of additives, going from 1 to more than 10% w/w. On the other hand, literature reports a number of cases where only a few or a few tens of parts per million of impurity molecules are sufficient to block crystal growth completely at not too high supersaturation. Examples are the effects of Cr3+ and Fe3+ ions on the growth of {100} KH2PO4 crystals4,39,46 and of Fe3+ impurities on the growth and dissolution of K2SO4 crystals.44,45 In such cases, the strength of the downward bond and maybe also the horizontal bonds of the inhibitor molecules largely exceeds that of the growth units, and the inhibitor gets firmly attached to the growing crystal surface. Then, the inhibitor effect can be orders of magnitude stronger. Modeling this situation requires different simulations, using an extra variable (strength of the downward bond) and an essentially different analytical approach. Finally, our results must be considered with care for crystal growth from the vapor phase, which is generally dominated by surface diffusion. This is not included in our model. 7. Conclusions In this paper, we investigated the impact of “tailor-made” inhibitors on crystal growth by using kinetic Monte Carlo simulations. Tailor-made inhibitor molecules have horizontal and downward bonds that are very similar to those of the growth units in the crystal surface, but the strength of the upward bonds is weaker or even repelling. Adding such molecules leads to a controlled retardation of the growth or dissolution of specific crystal faces, which allows for “engineering” crystal morphologies. As a model system, we used the {001} surface of the Kossel crystal, growing or dissolving in the presence of three different types of inhibitor molecules. The effect of tailor-made inhibitors on the growth of thermally roughened faces is limited. The reduction of the growth rate is not very high, growth kinetics remains linear, and no dead supersaturation zone occurs. A simple model considering a blocking efficiency for each inhibitor molecule adsorbed at the crystal surface is used to describe the dependence of the growth rate on inhibitor concentration, supersaturation, and bond strength. The influence of the inhibitor molecules on the etching

van Enckevort and Los of rough faces is similar to that for growth; the effect on the sticking fraction is mild, and no dead undersaturation zone develops. Compared to the rough faces, the influence of the tailor-made inhibitors is large for the growth of flat faces because now the repelling inhibitor molecules are firmly embedded in the growing crystal surface. Growth kinetics is no longer linear, and a dead supersaturation zone develops, where crystal growth is blocked for supersaturations less than a critical value (∆µ/ kT)*. The width of the dead zone as a function of step free energy and inhibitor concentration in the mother phase agrees with Cabrera and Vermilyea’s theory of step pinning by adsorbed impurities. For strong bottom and side bonds and the most repelling top bonds, crystal growth is accompanied by the formation of vacancies on top of incorporated growth units. The concentration of the grown-in inhibitor molecules increases for increasing supersaturation up to (∆µ/kT)*, after which it decreases again. The maximum grown-in inhibitor fraction at (∆µ/kT)* is proportional with its concentration in the mother phase. Etching of flat faces again reveals nonlinear kinetics and the existence of a dead undersaturation zone, where dissolution is prohibited. This rather unexpected result is qualitatively explained by considering the process of etching as stripping off of surface steps by kink propagation in the presence of inhibitor molecules. References and Notes (1) Rome´ de l’Isle, J. B. L. Cristallographie; Didot jeune, Knapen and Delaguette: Paris, 1783; p 379. (2) Radenovic, N.; Kaminski, D.; van Enckevort, W. J. P.; Graswinckel, S.; Shah, I.; in ’t Veld, M.; Algra, R.; Vlieg, E. J. Chem. Phys. 2006, 124, 164706. (3) Buckley, H. E. Crystal Growth; John Wiley & Sons: New York, 1951. (4) Sangwal, K. AdditiVes and Crystallization Processes, from Fundamentals to Applications; John Wiley & Sons: Chichester, England, 2007. (5) Kubota, N.; Yokota, M.; Mullin, J. W. J. Cryst. Growth 1997, 182, 86-94. (6) Simon, B.; Grassi, A.; Boistelle, R. J. Cryst. Growth 1974, 26, 90-96. (7) Plomp, M.; McPherson, A.; Malkin, A. J. Proteins: Struct., Funct., Genet. 2003, 50 486-495. (8) Weissbuch, I.; Popovitz-Biro, R.; Lahav, M.; Leiserowitz, L. Acta Crystallogr., Sect. B 1995, 51, 115-148. (9) Berkovitch-Yellin, Z.; van Mil, J.; Addadi, L.; Idelson, M.; Lahav, M.; Leiserowitz, L. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 1985, 107, 3111-3122. (10) Weissbuch, I.; Lahav, M.; Leiserowitz, L. Cryst. Growth Des. 2003, 3, 125-150. (11) Davey, R. J.; Black, S. N. J. Cryst. Growth 1986, 79, 765-774. (12) Sarig, S. In Handbook of Crystal Growth; Hurle, D. T. J., Ed.; Elsevier: Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1993; Volume 2b, Chapter 19, pp 1217-1269. (13) Gilmer, G. H.; Bennema, P. J. Appl. Phys. 1972, 43, 1347-1360. (14) Rak, M.; Izdebski, M.; Brozi, A. Comput. Phys. Comm. 2001, 138, 250-263. (15) Boerrigter, S. X. M.; Josten, G. P. H.; van de Streek, J.; Hollander, F. F. A.; Los, J.; Cuppen, H. M.; Bennema, P.; Meekes, H. J. Phys. Chem. A 2004, 108, 5894-5902. (16) Cuppen, H. M.; Meekes, H.; van Enckevort, W. J. P.; Vlieg, E.; Knops, H. J. F. Phys. ReV. B 2004, 69, 245404/1-245404/6. (17) Gilmer, G. H.; Huang, H.; Diaz de la Rubia, T.; Dalla Torre, J.; Baumann, F. Thin Solid Films 2000, 365, 189-200. (18) van Enckevort, W. J. P.; van der Berg, A. C. J. F. J. Cryst. Growth 1998, 183, 441-455. (19) Yoshioka, Y.; Matsui, T.; Kasuga M.; Irisawa, T. J. Cryst. Growth 1999, 198/199, 71-76. (20) Duffy, D. M.; Rodger, P. M. J. Phys. Chem. B 2002, 106, 1121011217. (21) Gilmer, G. H.; Bennema, P. J. Cryst. Growth 1972, 13/14, 148153. (22) Bennema, P. In Handbook of Crystal Growth; Hurle, D. T. J., Ed.; Elsevier: Amsterdam, The Netherlands, 1993; Vol. 1, Chapter 7, p 483.

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