Thin Films/Coatings Preparation and Kinetic Analysis of Growth Processes

Dear Colleagues,

The aim of this Special Issue is the theory, modeling, and computer simulation of thin film/coating growth processes during deposition by various methods, such as physical and chemical vapor deposition, magnetron sputtering, ion-beam-assisted deposition, and many other methods. The morphology, structure, and other properties of thin films/coatings are determined by the applied deposition method, and it is vital to understand the mechanisms and dynamics of the elementary processes that take place during film deposition (adsorption and desorption in non-thermodynamic equilibrium conditions, surface and bulk diffusion, surface chemical reactions at external activation by particle beams (ions, electrons, photons of all electromagnetic spectra), coalescence (considering different mechanisms, activation by external particle beams), clustering, layering, etc.). A deep understanding of the elementary processes, their dynamics, and their mechanisms in different deposition methods allows for the controlling of various physical, chemical, and structural properties of films. Despite the huge progress made in the theory, mathematical modeling, and computer simulation of thin film growth, there are still many unanswered questions, especially concerning the deposition and growth of multicomponent and compound thin films and coatings. We warmly invite researchers to submit their contributions, both original research articles and review papers, that are related to theory, mathematical modeling, and computer simulations analyzing the kinetics and mechanisms of elementary processes taking place during the deposition of thin films/coatings to this Special Issue.

Topics of interest include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Adsorption;
• Coalescence;
• Multicomponent and compound films;
• Surface diffusion;
• Kinetic modeling;
• Surface roughness;
• Phase separation;
• Multilayers;
• Structure and morphology.

We look forward to receiving your contributions!

Prof. Dr. Arvaidas Galdikas
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Coatings is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2600 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

• adsorption
• coalescence
• multicomponent and compound films
• surface diffusion
• kinetic modeling
• surface roughness
• phase separation
• multilayers
• structure and morphology