Evidences of an intermediate rodlike defect during the transformation of {113} defects into dislocation loops

A detailed study of the transformation of the {113} defects into dislocation loops has been carried out in Ge preamorphized silicon (30keV, 1×1015Ge+∕cm2) and annealed at 800°C for time ranging from 15to2700s. The presence of a stable defect, along the ⟨110⟩ directions, formed during the transformation from {113}’s into Frank dislocation loops (FDLs), has been revealed and studied. Performing a detailed transmission electron microscopy analysis in nonconventional zone axes, a 1∕3 [111]-type Burgers vector has been found. These defects are shown to be more stable than {113}’s but less than FDLs.