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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 15 February 2011
As the minimum dimension of electronic circuits is reduced below one micron, there has been increased interest in developing techniques for fabricating submicron structures. Pb-Sn, Cd-Pb and Al-Al 2Cu eutectic thin films were directionally solidified at rates between .0015 cm/sec and .15 cm/sec with both a lamp and a laser heat source to fabricate fault free submicron periodic structures. A transition from lamellar to cellular structures with increasing solidification rate was observed with a thermal gradient of 200°C/cm applied with the lamp heat source. Cells did not form with the increased thermal gradient produced by the laser heat source, 8000° C/cm. Spacings as fine as .1 micron were observed in the Cd-Pb eutectic. A maximum theoretical growth rate was estimated which corresponds to a spacing of 80A.