Masanobu Yamazaki

Growth of 2H-SiC Single Crystals in a C-Li-Si Ternary Melt System

We have achieved the first successful growth of 2H-SiC single crystals using the C-Li-Si melt system. Li-Si melt, whose melting point is lower than 1000 oC, was chosen because the 2H-SiC polytype is more stable at lower temperatures than other polytypes such as 3C-, 4H-, and 6H-SiC. Many hexagonal-shaped crystals of approximately 100 m in diameter were observed via a scanning electron microscope (SEM). A high resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM) lattice image of the grown crystals showed a periodical structure with A-B stacking along the <0001> direction. These results indicated that the Li-based flux was useful for growing bulk 2H-SiC single crystals.

Growth of Single-Phase 2H-SiC Layers by Vapor–Liquid–Solid Process

We attempted the vapor–liquid–solid (VLS) growth of SiC film in Si-Li solution using gaseous CH4 as a carbon source at 900 oC. A 100-m-thick liquid-phase epitaxy (LPE) layer was obtained on a 4H-SiC (0001) substrate under CH4 pressure of 0.9 MPa. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and a high-resolution transmission electron microscope (HR-TEM) measurement showed that the LPE layer was single-phase 2H-SiC. We concluded that VLS growth in Si-Li solution using gaseous CH4 as a carbon source is useful for growing single-phase 2H-SiC.