Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 February 2011
Uniaxial stress perturbations have provided considerable data on the properties of optical centres in silicon. This paper reviews their uses in determining atomic kinetics and the symmetry of optical centres. Examples are given of the different effects of stress-induced interactions between states, and of the thermalisation of stress-split states. Uniaxial stresses are shown to be useful in grouping together similar optical centres, and in understanding the defect-induced widths of zero phonon lines and the vibronic properties of centres. At some optical centres, “internal” stresses can be used to contruct bound states from perfect crystal states.