Abstract
The Volmer-Weber mechanism of thin-film growth can be described by a hierarchy of rate equations representing the time dependence of the island size distribution. Scaling theory is used to obtain analytic solutions to the rate equations for the early stages of growth for a situation in which the condensation coefficient is unity. Exponents are calculated which characterize the time evolution of the density of islands, the mean island size and the substrate coverage. There is good agreement with experimental data for the deposition of gold, copper and platinum on carbon.