Molecular dynamics simulations of epitaxial growth of aluminum films under compression have revealed a novel fusion-crystallization mechanism for nucleation of a misfit dislocation, in which a local disorder zone forms in the Surface and near-surface layers, followed by re-crystallization, in which the misfit dislocation is nucleated. The origin of the local fusion has been investigated. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.