Reflectivity of crystalline Ge and Si at the melting temperature measured in real time with subnanosecond temporal resolution

5 pages, 4 figures.Real time reflectivity measurements with subnanosecond time resolution have been used to determine the reflectivity at the melting temperature RS(Tm) of single crystalline Ge and Si at 514.5 nm. Due to the excellent time resolution and sensitivity achieved in a single exposure experiment, the reflectivity of the solid just before melting could be measured. Values of RS(Tm)=0.470±0.006 and RS(Tm)=0.440±0.008 for c-Ge and c-Si have, respectively, been determined. These values, together with those determined by heating in vacuum in the range 300–800 K, are compared to those reported earlier in the literature and the differences are discussed.This work has been partially supported by the European Union under Contract No. TMR ERB-CT98-0188. N. Chaoui acknowledges the funding by the same contract. J. Siegel acknowledges the funding of the European Union through the TMR program (ERB-0001GT954352).Peer reviewe