Transmission electron microscope investigation of the growth of copper precipitate colonies in silicon

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Abstract
The growth of copper precipitate colonies in high-purity dislocation-free silicon single crystals has been examined by transmission electron microscopy. The colonies, being coplanar arrangements of copper-silicide particles on either {110} or {100) planes, nucleate and grow during rapid cooling from higher temperatures. The kinetics of the colony growth process has been analyzed in terms of a model based on repeated nucleation on a climbing dislocation. The possibility of having the growing copper-silicide particles dragged by the dislocations has been discussed, and a mechanism based on a particle dragging/dislocation climb effect has been suggested in order to explain the development of dendritic dislocation dipole branches.