Crack growth in single-crystal silicon

Crack growth in single-crystal silicon at room temperature in air was evaluated by double torsion (DT) load-relaxation method and monitored by acoustic emission (AE) technique. Both DT and AE methods indicated lack of subcritical crack growth in silicon. At the critical stress intensity factor, the crack front was found to be jumping several times in a 'mirror' region and then followed by fast crack growth in a 'hackle' region. Hackle marks were found to be associated with plastic deformation at the tip of the fast moving crack. No dislocation etch pits were found in the 'mirror' region, in which crack growth may result from interatomic bonds broken at the crack tip under stress without any plastic deformation. Acoustic emission appears to be spontaneously generated from both interatomic bonds broken and dislocation generation at the moving crack tip during the crack growth in single-crystal silicon.