  Roughness and orientational order in thin films of anisotropic particles are
investigated using kinetic Monte Carlo simulations on a cubic lattice.
Anisotropic next-neighbor interactions between the lattice particles were
chosen to mimic the effects of shape anisotropy in the interactions of disc- or
rod-like molecules with van-der-Waals attractions. Increasing anisotropy leads
first to a preferred orientation in the film (which is close to the
corresponding equilibrium transition) while the qualitative mode of roughness
evolution (known from isotropic systems) does not change. At strong
anisotropies, an effective step-edge (Ehrlich-Schwoebel) barrier appears and a
non-equilibrium roughening effect is found, accompanied by re-ordering in the
film which can be interpreted as the nucleation and growth of domains of
lying-down discs or rods. The information on order and roughness is combined
into a diagram of dynamic growth modes.
