Silicon Carbide (SiC) is a wide bandgap semiconductor that has attracted a lot of interest for electronic applications due to its high thermal conductivity, high saturation electron drift velocity and high critical electric field strength. In recent years commercial SiC devices have started to make their way into high and medium voltage applications. Despite the advancements in SiC growth over the years, several issues remain. One of these issues is that the bulk grown SiC wafers are not suitable for electronic applications due to the high background doping and high density of basal plane dislocations (BPD). Due to these problems SiC for electronic devices must be grown by homoepitaxy. The epitaxial growth is performed in chemical vapor deposition (CVD) reactors. In this work, growth has been performed in a horizontal hot-wall CVD (HWCVD) reactor. In these reactors it is possible to produce high-quality SiC epitaxial layers within a wide range of doping, both n- and p-type. SiC is a well-known example of polytypism, where the different polytypes exist as different stacking sequences of the Si-C bilayers. Polytypism makes polytype stability a problem during growth of SiC. To maintain polytype stability during homoepitaxy of the hexagonal polytypes the substrates are usually cut so that the angle between the surface normal and the c-axis is a few degrees, typically 4 or 8°. The off-cut creates a high density of micro-steps at the surface. These steps allow for the replication of the substrates polytype into the growing epitaxial layer, the growth will take place in a step-flow manner. However, there are some drawbacks with step-flow growth. One is that BPDs can replicate from the substrate into the epitaxial layer. Another problem is that 4H-SiC is often used as a substrate for growth of GaN epitaxial layers. The epitaxial growth of GaN has been developed on on-axis substrates (surface normal coincides with c-axis), so epitaxial 4H-SiC layers grown on off-axis substrates cannot be used as substrates for GaN epitaxial growth. In efforts to solve the problems with off-axis homoepitaxy of 4H-SiC, on-axis homoepitaxy has been developed. In this work, further development of wafer-scale on-axis homoepitaxy has been made. This development has been made on a Si-face of 4H-SiC substrates. The advances include highly resistive epilayers grown on on-axis substrates. In this thesis the ability to control the surface morphology of epitaxial layers grown on on-axis homoepitaxy is demonstrated. This work also includes growth of isotopically enriched 4H-SiC on on-axis substrates, this has been done to increase the thermal conductivity of the grown epitaxial layers. In (paper 1) on-axis homoepitaxy of 4H-SiC has been developed on 100 mm diameter substrates. This paper also contains comparisons between different precursors. In (paper 2) we have further developed on-axis homoepitaxy on 100 mm diameter wafers, by doping the epitaxial layers with vanadium. The vanadium doping of the epitaxial layers makes the layers highly resistive and thus suitable to use as a substrate for III-nitride growth. In (paper 3) we developed a method to control the surface morphology and reduce the as-grown surface roughness in samples grown on on-axis substrates. In (paper 4) we have increased the thermal conductivity of 4H-SiC epitaxial layers by growing the layers using isotopically enriched precursors. In (paper 5) we have investigated the role chlorine have in homoepitaxial growth of 4H-SiC. In (paper 6) we have investigated the charge carrier lifetime in as-grown samples and traced variations in lifetime to structural defects in the substrate. In (paper 7) we have investigated the formation mechanism of a morphological defect in homoepitaxial grown 4H-SiC.

A comprehensive introduction and up-to-date reference to SiC power semiconductor devices covering topics from material properties to applications Based on a number of breakthroughs in SiC material science and fabrication technology in the 1980s and 1990s, the first SiC Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) were released as commercial products in 2001. The SiC SBD market has grown significantly since that time, and SBDs are now used in a variety of power systems, particularly switch-mode power supplies and motor controls. SiC power MOSFETs entered commercial production in 2011, providing rugged, high-efficiency switches for high-frequency power systems. In this wide-ranging book, the authors draw on their considerable experience to present both an introduction to SiC materials, devices, and applications and an in-depth reference for scientists and engineers working in this fast-moving field. Fundamentals of Silicon Carbide Technology covers basic properties of SiC materials, processing technology, theory and analysis of practical devices, and an overview of the most important systems applications. Specifically included are: A complete discussion of SiC material properties, bulk crystal growth, epitaxial growth, device fabrication technology, and characterization techniques. Device physics and operating equations for Schottky diodes, pin diodes, JBS/MPS diodes, JFETs, MOSFETs, BJTs, IGBTs, and thyristors. A survey of power electronics applications, including switch-mode power supplies, motor drives, power converters for electric vehicles, and converters for renewable energy sources. Coverage of special applications, including microwave devices, high-temperature electronics, and rugged sensors. Fully illustrated throughout, the text is written by recognized experts with over 45 years of combined experience in SiC research and development. This book is intended for graduate students and researchers in crystal growth, material science, and semiconductor device technology. The book is also useful for design engineers, application engineers, and product managers in areas such as power supplies, converter and inverter design, electric vehicle technology, high-temperature electronics, sensors, and smart grid technology.

A comprehensive introduction and up-to-date reference to SiC power semiconductor devices covering topics from material properties to applications Based on a number of breakthroughs in SiC material science and fabrication technology in the 1980s and 1990s, the first SiC Schottky barrier diodes (SBDs) were released as commercial products in 2001. The SiC SBD market has grown significantly since that time, and SBDs are now used in a variety of power systems, particularly switch-mode power supplies and motor controls. SiC power MOSFETs entered commercial production in 2011, providing rugged, high-efficiency switches for high-frequency power systems. In this wide-ranging book, the authors draw on their considerable experience to present both an introduction to SiC materials, devices, and applications and an in-depth reference for scientists and engineers working in this fast-moving field. Fundamentals of Silicon Carbide Technology covers basic properties of SiC materials, processing technology, theory and analysis of practical devices, and an overview of the most important systems applications. Specifically included are: A complete discussion of SiC material properties, bulk crystal growth, epitaxial growth, device fabrication technology, and characterization techniques. Device physics and operating equations for Schottky diodes, pin diodes, JBS/MPS diodes, JFETs, MOSFETs, BJTs, IGBTs, and thyristors. A survey of power electronics applications, including switch-mode power supplies, motor drives, power converters for electric vehicles, and converters for renewable energy sources. Coverage of special applications, including microwave devices, high-temperature electronics, and rugged sensors. Fully illustrated throughout, the text is written by recognized experts with over 45 years of combined experience in SiC research and development. This book is intended for graduate students and researchers in crystal growth, material science, and semiconductor device technology. The book is also useful for design engineers, application engineers, and product managers in areas such as power supplies, converter and inverter design, electric vehicle technology, high-temperature electronics, sensors, and smart grid technology.

Since the 1997 publication of "Silicon Carbide - A Review of Fundamental Questions and Applications to Current Device Technology" edited by Choyke, et al., there has been impressive progress in both the fundamental and developmental aspects of the SiC field. So there is a growing need to update the scientific community on the important events in research and development since then. The editors have again gathered an outstanding team of the world's leading SiC researchers and design engineers to write on the most recent developments in SiC.

Selected, peer reviewed papers from the 9th European Conference on Silicon Carbide and Related Materials (ECSCRM 2012), September 2 -6, 2012, St. Petersburg, Russian Federation

The 21st conference proceedings continue the tradition of the ICPS series. The proceedings cover all aspects of semiconductor physics, including those related to materials, processing and devices. Plenary and invited speakers address areas of major interest.

This thesis aims to develop a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process for the new directions in both silicon carbon (SiC) and gallium nitride (GaN) epitaxial growth. The properties of the grown epitaxial layers are investigated in detail in order to have a deep understanding. SiC is a promising wide band gap semiconductor material which could be utilized for fabricating high-power and high-frequency devices. 3C-SiC is the only polytype with a cubic structure and has superior physical properties over other common SiC polytypes, such as high hole/electron mobility and low interface trap density with oxide. Due to lack of commercial native substrates, 3C-SiC is mainly grown on the cheap silicon (Si) substrates. However, there’s a large mismatch in both lattice constants and thermal expansion coefficients leading to a high density of defects in the epitaxial layers. In paper 1, the new CVD solution for growing high quality double-position-boundaries free 3C-SiC using on-axis 4H-SiC substrates is presented. Reproducible growth parameters, including temperature, C/Si ratio, ramp-up condition, Si/H2 ratio, N2 addition and pressure, are covered in this study. GaN is another attractive wide band gap semiconductor for power devices and optoelectronic applications. In the GaN-based transistors, carbon is often exploited to dope the buffer layer to be semi-insulating in order to isolate the device active region from the substrate. The conventional way is to use the carbon atoms on the gallium precursor and control the incorporation by tuning the process parameters, e.g. temperature, pressure. However, there’s a risk of obtaining bad morphology and thickness uniformity if the CVD process is not operated in an optimal condition. In addition, carbon source from the graphite insulation and improper coated graphite susceptor may also contribute to the doping in a CVD reactor, which is very difficult to be controlled in a reproducible way. Therefore, in paper 2, intentional carbon doping of (0001) GaN using six hydrocarbon precursors, i.e. methane (CH4), ethylene (C2H4), acetylene (C2H2), propane (C3H8), iso-butane (i-C4H10) and trimethylamine (N(CH3)3), have been explored. In paper 3, propane is chosen for carbon doping when growing the high electron mobility transistor (HEMT) structure on a quarter of 3-inch 4H-SiC wafer. The quality of epitaxial layer and fabricated devices is evaluated. In paper 4, the behaviour of carbon doping using carbon atoms from the gallium precursor, trimethylgallium (Ga(CH3)3), is explained by thermochemical and quantum chemical modelling and compared with the experimental results. GaN is commonly grown on foreign substrates, such as sapphire (Al2O3), Si and SiC, resulting in high stress and high threading dislocation densities. Hence, bulk GaN substrates are preferred for epitaxy. In paper 5, the morphological, structural and luminescence properties of GaN epitaxial layers grown on N-face free-standing GaN substrates are studied since the N-face GaN has advantageous characteristics compared to the Ga-face GaN. In paper 6, time-resolved photoluminescence (TRPL) technique is used to study the properties of AlGaN/GaN epitaxial layers grown on both Ga-face and N-face free-standing GaN substrates. A PL line located at ~3.41 eV is only emerged on the sample grown on the Ga-face substrate, which is suggested to associate with two-dimensional electron gas (2DEG) emission.

Over the years, many successful attempts have been chapters in this part describe the well-known processes made to describe the art and science of crystal growth, such as Czochralski, Kyropoulos, Bridgman, and o- and many review articles, monographs, symposium v- ing zone, and focus speci cally on recent advances in umes, and handbooks have been published to present improving these methodologies such as application of comprehensive reviews of the advances made in this magnetic elds, orientation of the growth axis, intro- eld. These publications are testament to the grow- duction of a pedestal, and shaped growth. They also ing interest in both bulk and thin- lm crystals because cover a wide range of materials from silicon and III–V of their electronic, optical, mechanical, microstructural, compounds to oxides and uorides. and other properties, and their diverse scienti c and The third part, Part C of the book, focuses on - technological applications. Indeed, most modern ad- lution growth. The various aspects of hydrothermal vances in semiconductor and optical devices would growth are discussed in two chapters, while three other not have been possible without the development of chapters present an overview of the nonlinear and laser many elemental, binary, ternary, and other compound crystals, KTP and KDP. The knowledge on the effect of crystals of varying properties and large sizes. The gravity on solution growth is presented through a c- literature devoted to basic understanding of growth parison of growth on Earth versus in a microgravity mechanisms, defect formation, and growth processes environment.