It was pointed out that experimental data, and phenomenological models, for ion beam-induced epitaxial crystallization did not yet furnish unambiguous information concerning the role played by point defects in ion beam-induced epitaxial crystallization. The influence of vacancies and interstitials present at the amorphous/crystalline interface was investigated by classical molecular dynamics simulations, using the Stillinger-Weber potential. The results showed that vacancies near the interface always migrate to the interface and cause crystallization while in the case of interstitials the situation was morecomplex. The results were explained with respect to the experimental data and the assumptions made in the different phenomenological models.

The Role of Point Defects in Ion Beam Induced Crystallization of Silicon Investigated by Molecular Dynamics Simulations. B.Weber, K.Gärtner: Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B, 2001, 175-177, 119-24