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An analysis of the formation of bulk amorphous silicon from the melt

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Abstract

The possibility of forming bulk amorphous silicon from the undercooled liquid is analyzed by calculations of the rates for homogeneous nucleation of the amorphous and crystalline phases, the rate of heterogeneous nucleation of the crystalline phase on the liquid-amorphous interface, and the possibility of crystallization of the amorphous phase in the solid state. It appears that bulk formation of the amorphous phase may be possible in appropriately seeded millimeter-sized samples. A new lower limit for the amorphous-liquid interfacial tension is presented as well.

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Author information

Author notes

  1. Yan Shao (Graduate Student, Senior Scientist)

    Present address: Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Eaton Corporation, 01915, Beverly, MA

    Yan Shao (Graduate Student, Senior Scientist)

  2. the Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, 02138, Cambridge, MA

    Frans Spaepen (Professor) & David Turnbull (Professor Emeritus)

Authors
  1. Yan Shao
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  2. Frans Spaepen
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  3. David Turnbull
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Additional information

This article is based on a presentation made in the “Structure and Properties of Bulk Amorphous Alloys” Symposium as part of the 1997 Annual Meeting of TMS at Orlando, Florida, February 10–11, 1997, under the auspices of the TMS-EMPMD/SMD Alloy Phases and MDMD Solidification Committees, the ASM-MSD Thermodynamics and Phase Equilibria, and Atomic Transport Committees, and sponsorship by the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and the Los Alamos National Laboratory.

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Shao, Y., Spaepen, F. & Turnbull, D. An analysis of the formation of bulk amorphous silicon from the melt. Metall Mater Trans A 29, 1825–1828 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-998-0006-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11661-998-0006-4

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