Abstract: The inventive means includes a supply vessel (10) having a bottom opening (14), feed means (15 to 17) for supplying the vessel (10) with solid silicon and means (11 to 13) for heating the vessel, said vessel being placed above the crucible (1) containing the melt (8) so that the molten silicon in the vessel (10) flows out through the bottom opening (14) into the crucible (1) when the level (h) of the molten silicon in the supply vessel reaches a maximum value (20) and the replenishing flow stops when the level (h) has fallen to a minimum value (22). An application involving the deposition of a layer of polycrystalline silicon onto a carbon tape is described.

Abstract: A crucible containing molten silicon, has a strip of carbon film vertically transported through the melt, an optical system imaging a small area of the silicon surface onto a photodetector, said image area being that of the silicon liquid-solid interface, and a servo system connected to said photodetector and to an electrical drive for feeding silicon into said melt. The invention is applicable to the manufacture of solar cells.