Hydrogenated amorphous silicon films were grown on to thermally oxidized silicon wafers by Radio Frequency magnetron sputtering, and SiN(x) and Al(2)O(3) capping layers were used to control the residual thermal stress. After annealing, a comparison of the silicon films with and without capping layers indicates that tensile stress induced by the capping layer enhances the crystallinity of the annealed amorphous silicon film. The stress is due to the mismatch between the coefficients of thermal expansion for the capping layer and amorphous silicon film. These results highlight the potential of thermal stress as a means to alter the crystallization in thin film architectures and suggest that even larger effects can be obtained with suitable choices of capping layer chemistry. (C) 2008 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.