  We observe using low-energy electron microscopy the self-assembly of
monolayer-thick stripes of Au on W(110) near the transition temperature between
stripes and the non-patterned (homogeneous) phase. We demonstrate that the
amplitude of this Au stripe phase decreases with increasing temperature and
vanishes at the order-disorder transition (ODT). The wavelength varies much
more slowly with temperature and coverage than theories of stress-domain
patterns with sharp phase boundaries would predict, and maintains a finite
value of about 100 nm at the ODT. We argue that such nanometer-scale stripes
should often appear near the ODT.
