A semiconductor device containing a polycrystalline silicon thin film wherein crystal grains of the silicon thin film have mainly a columnar structure and a crystal orientation of individual crystal grains is almost in a uniform direction can be produced by depositing a non-impurity-doped silicon thin film or an impurity layer on an interface of underlying film, followed by deposition of impurity-doped silicon thin film, if necessary, followed by heat treatment for polycrystallization.