We study interfacial dynamics far from equilibrium in models with nonlocal shadowing effects in two spatial dimensions. Results from a nonequilibrium solid-on-solid model and a nonlinear, nonlocal partial-differential equation describing the time evolution of an interface are presented. In a wide temperature range, the systems form columnar structures that coarsen according to a power law. The coarsening exponents are measured in both models. The power spectrum of the interface shape exhibits a dynamic scaling. At low temperatures the system is described by the equation of Kardar, Parisi, and Zhang [Phys. Rev. Lett. 56, 889 (1986)]. We discuss the dynamic universality, and present evidence for a nonequilibrium phase transition between a rough and a columnar phase for the solid-on-solid model.

• Received 24 July 1991

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevA.45.3903