Crystallization of amorphous Si on a glass substrate through nucleation by Si+ ion implantation

Crystallization of amorphous Si films on a glass substrate by Si+ implantation (acceleration energy: 180 keV, beam current density: 10 μA/cm, ion dose: 1×1017 ions/cm2) was performed without external heating of the substrate. Transmission electron microscopy images of the crystallized specimens lead to the following conclusions: (1) crystallization was achieved through bulk nucleation by Si+ implantation, which is a low temperature and rapid process compared with the ordinary thermal process, (2) the crystallization is strongly related to the ion‐solid interaction, not due to ‘‘pure’’ thermal annealing by ion beam heating.