An in-situ X-ray topography observation of dislocations, crystal-melt interface and melting of silicon

An in-situ observation on the crystal-melt interfaces, their propagations and dislocations during the melting of silicon was carried out by X-ray topography technique. The dislocation-free melting process was successfully observed through the optimization of temperature distribution in the furnace and the shape of the sample. The melting with and without dislocations near the melting zone was discussed. It was demonstrated that the crystal-melt interface was kept flat during the dislocation-free melting, while the interface was rough if an isolated dislocation appeared in the melting zone.