Abstract
ABSTRACTAdvances in the study of high speed crystal growth from the melt are reviewed, with special emphasis on the fast melting and solidification of silicon achieved by use of Q-switched laser radiation pulses. Rapid melting of amorphous Si is confirmed to yield a liquid undercooled by several hundred Kelvins and, under suitable conditions, explosive crystal growth processes can occur. The latter involve the self-sustaining propagation of melt bands buried within the initially amorphous material. When the highest quench-rate conditions are established melting of even crystalline Si can yield a final amorphous solid phase. This breakdown in crystal growth is orientation dependent and can give regimes of crystal defect formation when amor-phization does not take place. The processes which characterize this limiting growth behaviour are discussed.
Published Version
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