Deep amorphous Si wells were created in a crystalline substrate by MeV ion-implantation. The sides of the rectangular amorphous volume were aligned normal to fast growth directions. Upon heating at elevated temperatures crystallization proceeded inwards at both lateral and vertical interfaces. The progress of the epitaxy and the number and nature of the secondary structures formed were investigated through both plan-view and cross-sectional transmission electron microscopy analyses. The number of spanning dislocations was significantly reduced in this aligned configuration compared with the situation where the sides of the well were not coincident with crystallographic directions. The reduction in the number of spanning dislocations allowed a more complete characterization of other defects which arise uniquely from the crystallization of volumes in this geometry.

Minimization of Spanning Dislocations in the Crystallization of Deep Amorphous Silicon Wells through the Alignment of Volume Edges with Fast Growth Directions. A.C.Y.Liu, J.C.McCallum: Materials Science and Engineering B, 2003, 97[2], 167-75