Kinetic many-body model of recrystallization of pure and doped amorphous silicon

Abstract

A new kinetic many-body model for the regrowth mechanism of pure and highly doped amorphous silicon is reported. This model, which is applicable to the study of other regrowth processes, is based on the kinetic many-body theory of thermally activated rate processes in solids. It explains (a) the enhanced recrystallization rate when B, P, and As atoms are introduced into amorphous Si, (b) the reduced recrystallization rate when amorphous Si contains O and C atoms, and (c) the impurity-concentration dependence of the regrowth rate.