A study was made of the epitaxial crystallization of a thin film of amorphous Ge which was deposited, at room temperature, onto Si(111). It was found that features, of the Si surface, which were buried beneath the Ge film affected the rate of crystallization. In particular, solid-phase growth was enhanced at surface steps and defects in the surface reconstruction. It was demonstrated that control of the Ge crystallization morphology was possible via manipulation of the Si surface structure.

O.Hellman: Journal of Vacuum Science and Technology A, 1994, 12[5], 2825-9