The behavior of oxidation‐induced stacking faults (OSF’s) during the O2/NF3oxidation of silicon has been investigated in the temperature range of 850–1100 °C. A very fast shrinkage rate of pregrown OSF in silicon and a nonlinear shrinkage rate with time have been observed. The shrinkage rate of OSF decreases as the oxidation time is increased. It is proposed that the fast OSF shrinkage is due to excessive vacancy flux as a result of the reaction of fluorine at the Si/SiO2interface during the initial transient state, and subsequently the shrinkage rate is reduced as the steady‐state condition of vacancy‐interstitial recombination is approached. It has also been found that no OSF’s are generated even when mechanical damage by abrasion is done prior to oxidation.