Analysis of rod-like defects in silicon and germanium by means of high-resolution electron microscopy

Characteristic radiation damages (rod-like defects) are generated under irradiation of Si and Ge in a HVEM at elevated temperatures (400 to 700°C). The microstructures of the defects extended in 〈110〉 direction can be analysed in their cross-section in (110)-oriented samples in a HREM. The electron microscopical images show that in most of the cases the defects lie on {001} and {113} planes, and the displacement vector of {001} defects amounts to R ≈︁ 0.25a〈001〉 and for {113} defects it is R ≈︁ 0.25a〈116〉. The atomic configurations of the defects are compared with various structure models.