Investigation of In-Grown Dislocations in 4H-SiC Epitaxial Layers

2006 ◽  
Vol 527-529 ◽  
pp. 147-152 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazutoshi Kojima ◽  
Tomohisa Kato ◽  
Satoshi Kuroda ◽  
Hajime Okumura ◽  
Kazuo Arai
Keyword(s):  
Epitaxial Growth ◽  
Epitaxial Layer ◽  
Basal Plane ◽  
Growth Conditions ◽  
Epitaxial Layers ◽  
Etch Pit Density ◽  
High Conversion Efficiency ◽  
Etch Pit ◽  
Edge Dislocations

We have investigated the generation of new dislocations during the epitaxial growth of 4H-SiC layers. Dislocations were mainly propagated from the substrate into the epitaxial layer. However, it was found that some amount of new threading edge dislocations (TEDs) and basal plane dislocations (BPDs) were generated during the epitaxial growth. The generation of those dislocations appeared to depend on the in-situ H2 etching conditions, not the epitaxial growth conditions. By optimizing in-situ H2 etching condition, we were able to effectively suppress the generation of new dislocations during epitaxial growth, and obtain 4H-SiC epitaxial layers which have the equivalent etch pit density (EPD) to the substrates. Our additional investigation of the conversion of BPDs to TEDs revealed that its efficiency similarly depends on in-situ H2 etching. We were able to obtain a high conversion efficiency of 97 % by optimizing the in-situ H2 etching conditions before epitaxial growth.

Turning of Basal Plane Dislocations during Epitaxial Growth on 4° Off-Axis 4H-SiC

2009 ◽  
Vol 615-617 ◽  
pp. 105-108 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachael L. Myers-Ward ◽  
Brenda L. VanMil ◽  
Robert E. Stahlbush ◽  
S.L. Katz ◽  
J.M. McCrate ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Vapor Deposition ◽  
Epitaxial Growth ◽  
Conversion Efficiency ◽  
Vapor Deposition ◽  
Basal Plane ◽  
Chemical Vapor ◽  
Growth Conditions ◽  
Epitaxial Layers ◽  
Basal Plane Dislocation ◽  
Edge Dislocations

Epitaxial layers were grown on 4° off-axis 4H-SiC substrates by hot-wall chemical vapor deposition. The reduced off-cut angle resulted in lower basal plane dislocation (BPD) densities. The dependence of BPD reduction on growth conditions was investigated using ultraviolet photoluminescence (UVPL) imaging. With this method, it was found that the dislocations were converting to threading edge dislocations throughout the thickness of the film. A high (≥ 97%) conversion efficiency was found for all films grown with this orientation. A conversion of 100% was achieved for several films without pre-growth treatments or growth interrupts.

Evolution of Basal Plane Dislocations during 4H-SiC Epitaxial Growth

2008 ◽  
Vol 600-603 ◽  
pp. 317-320 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert E. Stahlbush ◽  
Brenda L. VanMil ◽  
Kendrick X. Liu ◽  
Kok Keong Lew ◽  
Rachael L. Myers-Ward ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Epitaxial Growth ◽  
Basal Plane ◽  
Gas Flow ◽  
Epitaxial Layers ◽  
Half Loop ◽  
Edge Dislocations

The evolution of basal plane dislocations (BPDs) in 4H-SiC epitaxy during its growth is investigated by using two types of interrupted growth in conjunction with ultraviolet photoluminescence (UVPL) imaging of the dislocations. For the first, each epitaxial growth was stopped after 10-20 μm and a UVPL map was collected. For the second, changing the gas flow interrupted the growth and the BPDs were imaged at the end. The first sequence made it possible to track the formation of half-loop arrays and show that they arise from BPDs that glide perpendicular to the offcut direction. For both types, each interruption causes between 30 – 50% of the BPDs to be converted to threading edge dislocations (TEDs). This result suggests that using interrupted growth may be an alternate method to producing epitaxial layers with low BPD concentration.

A Pictorial Tracking of Basal Plane Dislocations in SiC Epitaxy

2010 ◽  
Vol 645-648 ◽  
pp. 271-276 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert E. Stahlbush ◽  
Rachael L. Myers-Ward ◽  
Brenda L. VanMil ◽  
D. Kurt Gaskill ◽  
Charles R. Eddy
Keyword(s):  
Epitaxial Growth ◽  
Basal Plane ◽  
Reduction Process ◽  
Epitaxial Layers ◽  
In Situ Growth ◽  
Half Loop ◽  
Insight Into

The recently developed technique of UVPL imaging has been used to track the path of basal plane dislocations (BPDs) in SiC epitaxial layers. The glide of BPDs during epitaxial growth has been observed and the role of this glide in forming half-loop arrays has been examined. The ability to track the path of BPDs through the epitaxy has made it possible to develop a BPD reduction process for epitaxy grown on 8° offcut wafers, which uses an in situ growth interrupt and has achieved a BPD reduction of > 98%. The images also provide insight into the strong BPD reduction that typically occurs in epitaxy grown on 4° offcut wafers.

Morphology Optimization of Very Thick 4H-SiC Epitaxial Layers

2013 ◽  
Vol 740-742 ◽  
pp. 251-254
Author(s):  
Milan Yazdanfar ◽  
Pontus Stenberg ◽  
Ian D. Booker ◽  
Ivan.G Ivanov ◽  
Henrik Pedersen ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Vapor Deposition ◽  
Epitaxial Growth ◽  
Vapor Deposition ◽  
Chemical Vapor ◽  
Growth Conditions ◽  
Epitaxial Layers ◽  
Power Devices ◽  
Chemical Vapor Deposition Reactor ◽  
Thick Layers

Epitaxial growth of about 200 µm thick, low doped 4H-SiC layers grown on n-type 8° off-axis Si-face substrates at growth rates around 100 µm/h has been done in order to realize thick epitaxial layers with excellent morphology suitable for high power devices. The study was done in a hot wall chemical vapor deposition reactor without rotation. The growth of such thick layers required favorable pre-growth conditions and in-situ etch. The growth of 190 µm thick, low doped epitaxial layers with excellent morphology was possible when the C/Si ratio was below 0.9. A low C/Si ratio and a favorable in-situ etch are shown to be the key parameters to achieve 190 µm thick epitaxial layers with excellent morphology.

Effect of Buffer Design on AlGaN/AlN/GaN Heterostrucutres by MBE

2003 ◽  
Vol 798 ◽  
Author(s):  
Gon Namkoong ◽  
W. Alan ◽  
A. S. Brown ◽  
M. Losurdo ◽  
M. M. Giangregorio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Electrical Properties ◽  
Buffer Layer ◽  
Growth Conditions ◽  
Buffer Layers ◽  
Structural Quality ◽  
Epitaxial Layers ◽  
Etch Pit Density ◽  
Etch Pit ◽  
Sheet Charge ◽  
Aln Buffer

ABSTRACTThe effect of the buffer layers on the subsequent GaN epitaxial layers and electrical properties of AlGaN/AlN/GaN heterojunction structures nitrided at various temperatures was investigated. For AlN buffer layers, two different growth conditions of AlN buffer layers were introduced to avoid Al droplets. We found that etch pit density and structural quality of GaN epitaxial layer strongly depends on the growth conditions of AlN buffer layers. When using a double buffer layer (low temperature GaN on high temperature AlN) for 200 °C nitridation, the etch pit density was measured to high 107 cm-2 in GaN epitaxial layers. Furthermore, we observed that electrical properties of AlGaN/AlN/GaN heterostructures depend on growth conditions of buffer layers and nitridation temperatures. The mobility in Al0.33Ga0.67N/AlN/GaN structures grown on single AlN buffer layers for 200 °C nitridation were 1300 cm2/Vs at a sheet charge of 1.6×1013 cm-2. Using the double buffer layer for 200 °C nitridation, the mobility increased to 1587 cm2/Vs with a sheet charge of 1.25×1013 cm-2.

New Separation Method of Threading Dislocations in 4H-SiC Epitaxial Layer by Molten KOH Etching

2011 ◽  
Vol 679-680 ◽  
pp. 298-301 ◽  
Author(s):  
T. Katsuno ◽  
Y. Watanabe ◽  
Fujiwara Hirokazu ◽  
Masaki Konishi ◽  
Takeo Yamamoto ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Epitaxial Layer ◽  
Basal Plane ◽  
Separation Method ◽  
New Method ◽  
Threading Dislocations ◽  
Screw Dislocations ◽  
Etch Pit ◽  
Almost All ◽  
Edge Dislocations ◽  
Koh Etching

A new method for the separation of threading screw dislocations (TSD) and threading edge dislocations (TED) in a 4H-SiC epitaxial layer is proposed by measurement of the etch pit angles. The etch pit angles of the TSDs and TEDs were 28±3 and 18±3°, respectively. In the case of etch pit depths within the epitaxial layer, the values were almost constant. Almost all of the TSDs were converted from basal plane dislocations (BPDs) at the epitaxial layer/substrate interface.

Conversion of Basal Plane Dislocations to Threading Edge Dislocations in Growth of Epitaxial Layers on 4H-SiC Substrates with a Vicinal Off-Angle

2014 ◽  
Vol 778-780 ◽  
pp. 99-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Keiko Masumoto ◽  
Sachiko Ito ◽  
Hideto Goto ◽  
Hirotaka Yamaguchi ◽  
Kentaro Tamura ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Epitaxial Growth ◽  
Edge Dislocation ◽  
Basal Plane ◽  
Conversion Ratio ◽  
Epitaxial Layers ◽  
Etch Pits ◽  
X Ray ◽  
Basal Plane Dislocation ◽  
Edge Dislocations ◽  
Koh Etching

We have investigated a conversion of basal plane dislocation (BPD) to threading edge dislocation (TED) in growth of epitaxial layers (epi-layers) on 4H-SiC vicinal substrates with an off-angle of 0.85° at low C/Si ratio of 0.7 by using deep KOH etching and X-ray topography observations. Deep KOH etching indicated that BPDs in the substrates converted to TEDs in the epi-layers. X-ray topography observations suggested that the conversion occurred during epitaxial growth when the thickness of epi-layers was less than 1.5 μm. We found that the conversion ratio obtained from counting deep KOH etch pits was over 99%.

New SiC Epitaxial Growth Process with up to 100% BPD to TED Defect Conversion on 150mm Hot-Wall CVD Reactor

2019 ◽  
Vol 963 ◽  
pp. 123-126
Author(s):  
Tobias Höchbauer ◽  
Christian Heidorn ◽  
Nikolaos Tsavdaris
Keyword(s):  
Epitaxial Growth ◽  
Epitaxial Layer ◽  
Basal Plane ◽  
Growth Process ◽  
High Growth ◽  
High Growth Rate ◽  
Layer Growth ◽  
Structural Defects ◽  
Epitaxial Layers ◽  
Basal Plane Dislocation

The future challenges for SiC device technology are cost reduction and increased reliability. A key point to achieve that is the increase of yield during epitaxial layer growth through the reduction of structural defects (such as basal plane dislocations and triangle defects), an increased thickness and doping uniformity, and a high growth rate. Despite significant advancements in SiC epitaxial growth technology, it still constitutes a big challenge to find the optimum working point at which all those requirements are fulfilled. By implementing a new epitaxial layer growth process, we are able to grow basal plane dislocation free epitaxial layers, while the density of other structural defects remains low. Additionally, intra-wafer thickness and doping uniformities of the epitaxial layers are further improved.

Control of the Surface Morphology on Low Off Angled 4H-SiC Homoepitaxal Growth

2009 ◽  
Vol 615-617 ◽  
pp. 113-116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazutoshi Kojima ◽  
Hajime Okumura ◽  
Kazuo Arai
Keyword(s):  
Surface Morphology ◽  
Epitaxial Growth ◽  
Epitaxial Layer ◽  
Flow Rate ◽  
Growth Conditions ◽  
Layer Surface ◽  
Specular Surface ◽  
Homoepitaxial Growth ◽  
Angle Difference ◽  
The Face

We have carried out detailed investigations on the influence of the growth conditions and the wafer off angle on the surface morphology of low off angle homoepitaxial growth. We found triangular features to be also serious problems on a 4 degree off 4H-SiC Si-face epitaxial layer surface. The control of the C/Si ratio by controlling the SiH4 flow rate is effective in suppressing the triangular features on 4 degree off Si-face homoepitaxial layer. As regards epitaxial growth on a vicinal off-axis substrate, the small off angle difference of a tenth part of a degree has an influence on the surface morphology of the epitaxial layer. This tendency depends on the face polarity and a C-face can be obtained that has a specular surface with a lower vicinal off angle than a Si-face. By controlling this off angle, a specular surface morphology without a bunched step structure could be obtained on a vicinal off angle 4H-SiC Si-face.

4H-SiC Homoepitaxial Growth on Vicinal-Off Angled Si-Face Substrate

2010 ◽  
Vol 645-648 ◽  
pp. 99-102 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kazutoshi Kojima ◽  
Sachiko Ito ◽  
Junji Senzaki ◽  
Hajime Okumura
Keyword(s):  
Surface Morphology ◽  
Epitaxial Growth ◽  
Growth Temperature ◽  
Growth Conditions ◽  
Step Bunching ◽  
Homoepitaxial Growth ◽  
Blocking Voltage ◽  
Basal Plane Dislocation ◽  
Epilayer Surface

We have carried out detailed investigations of 4H-SiC homoepitaxial growth on vicinal off-angled Si-face substrates. We found that the surface morphology of the substrate just after in-situ H2 etching was also affected by the value of the vicinal-off angle. Growth conditions consisting of a low C/Si ratio and a low growth temperature were effective in suppressing macro step bunching at the grown epilayer surface. We also demonstrated epitaxial growth without step bunching on a 2-inch 4H-SiC Si-face substrate with a vicinal off angle of 0.79o. Ni Schottky barrier diodes fabricated on an as-grown epilayer had a blocking voltage above 1000V and a leakage current of less than 5x10-7A/cm2. We also investigated the propagation of basal plane dislocation from the vicinal off angled substrate into the epitaxial layer.

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