Like the previous conferences in this series, POLYSE '98 covered many aspects of polycrystalline semiconductors. Whereas earlier proceedings had included many contributions on basic research, for example on the structural properties of single grain boundaries, later proceedings had included more articles on solar cells and thin-film transistors, seemingly marking a transition to a more technology-oriented conference. However, the contributions to POLYSE '98 show that the POLYSE-series is again bringing together researchers from basic research as well as engineers working on devices. The 84 papers cover topics such as: beam-induced currents, thin-film silicon, silicon crystallization, oxide semiconductor films, chalcogenide and spinel films, chalcopyrite films, thin-film junctions and devices; thus providing an extensive survey of the most recent results in polycrystalline semiconductor research.

Table of Contents:
Preface Atomic Structure and Properties of Extended Defects in Silicon Electrical Activity of Tilt and Twist Grain Boundaries in Silicon Computer Simulation of Impurity Diffusion in the Vicinity of Grain Boundaries Impurity Effect on the Dislocation DLTS Spectrum in Silicon Formation and Annihilation of New Donors in Ribbon Growth on Substrate Silicon Electrical Properties of Oxygen Precipitates Formed During Two Step Low Temperature Annealing Grain Boundary Effects in Ionic and Mixed Conductors Qualitative and Quantitative Analysis of Thin Film Heterostructures by Electron Beam Induced Current Laser Beam Induced Current Characterization of High Efficiency Chalcopyrite Solar Cells Effective Diffusion Length of Multicrystalline Solar Cells Injection and Collection Diffusion Lengths of Polycrystalline Thin-Film Solar Cells Hydrogenated Microcrystalline Silicon for Photovoltaic Applications Intrinsic Microcrystalline Silicon for Solar Cells Deposition of Microcrystalline Silicon Films by Magnetron Sputtering Thin Films Hydrogenated Silicon Deposited by Direct Current Magnetron Sputtering at High Rate Low-Temperature Deposition of Microcrystalline Silicon by Microwave Plasma-Enhanced Sputtering Influence of Deposit Thickness on the Microstructure and Surface Roughness of Silicon Films Deposited from Silane Adaptation of Microelectronics Simulator to the Polycrystalline Silicon Technology Thickness Control of the Amorphous Buffer Layer of Hydrogenated Nanocrystalline Silicon: Effect of the Dopant Concentration Structure Dependence of the Electrical Conductivity of Hydrogenated Nanocrystalline Silicon Films Highly Doped Microcrystalline SiGe Films: Structure and Transport Properties Photoluminescence Measurements of Microcrystalline Silicon Silicon Produced by Thermal Chemical Vapour Deposition on Ceramic Substrates for Photovoltaic Applications Grain Matrix Made with Excimer-Laser Crystallization of Thin Silicon Films Grain Boundary Location Control by Patterned Metal Film in Excimer Laser Crystallized Polysilicon Characterisation of Excimer Laser Crystallised Polysilicon by X-Ray Diffraction and by Channeling Contrast in a Scanning Electron Microscope Multicrystalline Silicon Thin Films: Laser Crystallization Conditions and Properties Laser-Crystallized Polycrystalline Silicon on Glass for Photovoltaic Applications Properties of Poly-Si Obtained by Solid Phase Crystallization of Differently Produced a:Si:H Thin Films Transmission Electron Microscopy and Raman Analysis of the Crystallisation Process of a-Si on Glass for Low Seed Density Fine-Crystalline Silicon Grown at Low Temperatures: Investigations by High-Resolution Microscopy Study of Polysilicon Produced by Solid Phase Crystallization of Hydrogenated Amorphous Silicon Deposited at High Rate Polycrystalline Silicon Films Produced by Low Pressure Chemical Vapour Deposition for Microswitch Applications: The Stress as Dependent on Deposition Conditions, Doping Type, and Thermal Treatments Ultrathin Quasi-Monocrystalline Silicon Films for Electronic Devices Atomic Layer Deposition of ZnO Films and Their Application to Solar Cells Properties of Transparent Conducting Indium Tin Oxide Films Deposited by Reactive e-Beam Evaporation on Heated Glass Large Area Device Quality Indium-Tin-Oxide Thin Films by Magnetron Sputterting Ion Assisted Reactive Magnetron Sputtering as a Deposition Method for High Quality Thin Films of Compound Semiconductors Structure and Properties of TiO2 Thin Films for Gas Sensors Texture Etched Aluminium Doped Zinc Oxide-Structural and Electrical Properties Electron Spin Resonance Centers in Donor-Doped CaTiO3 Single Crystals Modification in the Chemical Bath Deposition Apparatus, Growth and Characterization of CdS Semiconducting Thin Films for Photovoltaic Applications Process by PbSe Thin Film Deposition Reactions by Close-Spaced Vapor Transport Technique Comparative Study of Isothermal Grain Growth of CdS and CdTe in the Presence of Halide Fluxes p-Type Doping of CdTe Charge Transport and Photoelectric Processes in Polycrystalline Cadmium Telluride Surface-Barrier Structures Deposition Study of Bi2Te3 Thin Films by Close-Spaced Vapor Transport and Close-Spaced Sublimation High Temperature Electrical Conductivity in ZnS:Cu:Cl Ceramics and in CdSexTe1-x Polycrystalline Solid Solutions Influence of the Layer Oxidation on the Electrical Conductivity and the Positron Trapping in the Polycrystalline ZnCr2Se4 and CuCr2Se4 Spinels Defect-Induced Metal-Semiconductor Transition in CuxCoyCrzSe4 Fabrication of High Efficiency Cu(In,Ga)Se2 Thin Film Solar Cells Prepared by Physical Vapor Deposition Growth and Characterization of CuxAg1-xInSe2 Thin Films by Pulsed Laser Deposition Preparation of CuInS2 Thin Films by Sequential Evaporation of In2S3 and CuS Growth of CuGaSe2 Thin Films by Metal Organic Chemical Vapour Deposition from Different Organometallic Sources Formation of Polycrystalline CuInS2-Films by Plasma Sulphurization of Cu-In Bilayers in a Magnetron Discharge in an Ar/H2S-Atmosphere Polycrystalline Bulk CuInSe2 with a Deviation from Valence Stoichiometry Relation Between Photoconductivity and Deposition Conditions of Evaporated CuInSe2 Polycrystalline Thin Films Microstructure of Cu-Rich CuGaSe2 Thin Films Light-Induced Metastabilities in the Interface Region of Cu(In,Ga) Se2-Based Photovoltaic Devices Studied by Laplace Transform Junction Spectroscopy Air-Annealing Effects on Polycrystalline Cu(In,Ga)Se2 Heterojunctions Photoelectrical Properties of In/p-(Cu,Ag)(In,Ga) (Se,Te)2 Surface-Barrier Structures Polarization Photosensitivity of Polycrystalline-Film Cu(In,Ga)Se2/CdS/ZnO Structures Photoluminescence Study of Cu(GaxIn1-x)3Se5 and CuIn3(SxSe1-x)5 Crystals with 0≤x≤1 Fullerene-Based Thin Films as a Novel Polycrystalline Semiconductor Low Dislocation Density Multicrystalline Silicon for Photovoltaic Applications Phase Field Modeling of the Growth of mc-Silicon from the Melt Low-Temperature Silicon Epitaxy by Ion-Assisted Deposition Profiled Poly-Silicon Films by Hot-Wire Chemical Vapour Deposition for Solar Cells on Cheap Metal Substrate Optical Characterization of Ru2Si3 and Ru2Ge3 by Various Spectroscopic Methods and by Band Structure Calculations Cubic Silicon Carbide Films Grown by Reactive Magnetron Sputtering at Relatively Low Temperature Defect Engineering in Polycrystalline Silicon Using Ultrasound Defects Modification by Ultrasound in Crystals Method for the Evaluation of the Influence of Gettering and Bulk Passivation on Non-Uniform Block-Cast Multicrystalline Si Solar Cells Influence of Hydrogen Plasma Treatment on Electric Properties of Polycrystalline CdSxSe1-x Films Wet-Chemically Passivated Silicon Interfaces: Characterization by Surface Photovoltage Measurements, and Spectroscopic Ellipsometry Methods Improving the Quality of Polycrystalline Silicon String Ribbon for Fabricating High Efficiency Solar Cells Polycrystalline Silicon Thin Film Transistors: State of the Art and Improvement of Electrical Characteristics Leakage Current of Unhydrogenated Solid Phase Crystallized Silicon Thin Film Transistors Process to Fabricate High Performance Solid Phase Crystallized n-Type and p-Type Thin Film Transistors on Glass Substrate An Analytical Model for Rectifying Contacts on Polycrystalline Semiconductors Modelling of the Doping Effect on the Capacitance of the Metal/N-Polysilicon/Oxide/N-Silicon Structure a-Si/c-Si Heterojunctions as a Tool to Realise Solar Cells Based on Thin Poly-Silicon Growth on Glass Heterojunctions for Polycrystalline Silicon Solar Cells Properties of p-n Diodes Made in Polysilicon Layers with Intermediate Grain Size W-Polycide Gates with a Thin Polysilicon Layer: Microstructure and Resistivity