This paper reports the effects of stress and nanometer thick aluminum (Al) films on the aluminum- induced crystallization (AIC) of plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposited (PECVD) amorphous silicon (a-Si: H). It was found that tensile stress in a- Si: H can retard the AIC of a- Si: H, and the crystallization induced by 15 nm thick Al films is considerably stronger than that induced by Al films of 200 nm thickness. The research results in a novel technique for selectively crystallizing a- Si: H, which adds a new means in semiconductor device fabrication. (C) 2005 The Electrochemical Society.