Dynamics at crystal/melt interface during solidification of multicrystalline silicon

A fundamental understanding of crystal growth dynamics during directional solidification of multicrystalline Si (mc-Si) is crucial for the development of crystal growth technology for mc-Si ingots for use in solar cells. In situ observation of the crystal/melt interface is a way to obtain direct evidence of phenomena that occur at a moving crystal/melt interface during growth. In this review, some of the phenomena occurring in the solidification processes of mc-Si are introduced based on our in situ observation experiments, after a brief introduction of the history of the development of crystal growth technologies to obtain mc-Si ingots for solar cells.