Evolution of Surface Morphology of Anthracene Single Crystals Under Annealing

Abstract

In this work, the effect of formation of macrosteps under dissolution of the anthracene single crystal surface is shown for the first time. Under standard conditions (room temperature, atmospheric pressure, natural illumination), the etching process of the anthracene single crystal surface can be divided into two stages: formation of macrosteps up to 15 μm in width and 200 nm in height and formation of the step inhibition centers more than 300 nm in height and up to 3 μm in width. The second stage leads to a significant increase in the surface roughness due to the formation of a wave-like relief.