Comment on: “Surface-embedded-atom model of the potential-induced lifting of the reconstruction of Au(1 0 0)” by M.I. Haftel and M. Rosen: [Surf. Sci. 523 (2003) 118]

In situ high-temperature scanning tunneling microscopy (STM) was employed to follow the coalescence kinetics of two-dimensional TiN islands on atomically smooth TiN(0 0 1) and TiN(1 1 1) terraces. The results are analyzed using a numerical approach based upon Mullin’s theory for surface relaxation and experimentally determined absolute orientation-dependent step stiffnesses. From the calculated time-dependent island shapes during coalescence, in combination with the STM data, we obtain quantitative values for edge mobilities.