Current-induced stabilization of surface morphology in stressed solids.

We examine the surface morphological evolution of a conducting crystalline solid under the simultaneous action of an electric field and mechanical stress based on a fully nonlinear model and combining linear stability theory with self-consistent dynamical simulations. We demonstrate that electric current, through surface electromigration, can stabilize the surface morphology of the stressed solid against cracklike surface instabilities. The results also have more general implications for the morphological response of solid surfaces under the simultaneous action of multiple external forces.