An integrated laser assisted process using a commercial ArF-Excimer Laser has been used for producing thin amorphous hydrogenated silicon-germanium-carbon (a-SiGeC:H) films on 3-inch Si(100) wafers and for inducing the heteroepitaxial growth of a SiGeC alloy in selected regions of the wafer. The process combines two established laser assisted techniques: laser induced chemical vapour deposition (LCVD) in parallel configuration for growing the a-SiGeC:H coatings at a relatively low substrate temperature of 250 degreesC and pulsed laser induced epitaxy (PLIE) for modifying their structure and composition through laser induced rapid melt/solidification cycles of both, the coating and part of the underlying crystalline Si-wafer. Compositional and morphological properties of the uniform LCVD,town a-SiGeC:H films as well as of the alloys obtained after the PLIE process have been controlled by several analytical techniques in order to study the laser assisted process and the influence of the melt/solidification cycles on alloy composition and microstructure. (C) 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.