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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 26 February 2011
Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) processes are generally carried out under large temperature gradients. These gradients, temperature dependent fluid properties, and the earth's gravitational field give rise to buoyancy-driven free convective fluid flow which augments heat and mass transport in the CVD reactor. Under certain conditions, this free convective flow may alter the gas phase chemistry associated with the deposition process. In order to understand these free convective effects and their implications for the deposition process, a computational model describing the combined effects of fluid mechanics and chemistry has been developed. This model uses a coupled chemical equilibrium/mass transport code in conjunction with a 2-D elliptic fluid dynamics code to describe gas phase species profiles and deposition rates. This paper briefly describes the development of the model, its use, and the results of typical calculations.