Polycrystalline silicon thin films were prepared by depositing amorphous or microcrystalline silicon layers onto glass substrates and subsequent crystallization via solid or liquid phase crystallization approaches. Differences in layer morphology and quality were characterized using low temperature photoluminescence (PL) spectroscopy and electron backscatter diffraction spectroscopy. The evaluation of spectral and spatially resolved PL response was used to conclude about the relative density of defects in these layers. Liquid phase crystallization using a line shaped electron beam proves to be the most promising technique in order to obtain large-grained high quality polycrystalline silicon thin films. © 2013 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.