Plotting defect locations in insulating SiC presents a challenge because the total number of locations on a wafer is so large. We scan the wafer with visible light at an appropriate resolution and sort out transmissions appropriate for the defects we are looking for. Under these conditions, we find that voids and micropipes reduce the pixel transmission to 0.3 to 0.5. Sorting for this transmission reduces the number of pixels of interest to a manageable number, especially with recent progress in growing lower defect SiC. Now a commercial plotting program can easily display defect locations within a circle representing the wafer boundary. We verify the defect locations by scanning electron microscope secondary electron images and scanning optical microscope visible-light images at several resolutions.

SiC/Si heterostructures were synthesized by high dose carbon implantation into silicon using a metal vapor vacuum arc ion source. Their electron field emission properties were studied and correlated with results from other characterization techniques including atomic force microscopy (AFM), conducting AFM, Fourier transform infrared absorption spectroscopy, x-ray diffraction and photoelectron spectroscopy. It is clearly demonstrated that there are two types of field enhancement mechanisms responsible for the improvement of the electron field emission properties of these ion beam synthesized SiC/Si heterostructures, namely, the surface morphology effect and the local electrical inhomogeneity effect. The dependence of the FE properties on the carbon implant dose and thermal annealing conditions could be understood in terms of these two field enhancement mechanisms. It is also demonstrated that improvement in the FE properties can be achieved by implanting tungsten ions into these SiC/Si heterostructures.

Avalanche photodiodes (APDs) that are sensitive in the ultraviolet (UV) from approximately 250 – 350 nm have been fabricated from 4H-SiC. The SiC APDs, which use hole-initiated avalanche multiplication, were produced using n-type SiC epitaxial layers grown on a p-type substrate. In order to achieve avalanche breakdown in the bulk of the material, a dry ion-based etching technique was used to form sloped sidewalls on the devices. The devices had an area of approximately 1 mm2, and they had maximum breakdown voltages of approximately 500 V. The APDs had a positive temperature coefficient for avalanche breakdown voltage and showed excellent stability for multiplication factors in excess of several hundred. Dark current, photo responsivity, and multiplication measurements from room temperature to 150°C will be presented. The dark noise performance of the APDs has also been characterized using a standard nuclear spectroscopy system consisting of a charge sensitive preamplifier, a shaping amplifier, and a multichannel analyzer. The input equivalent dark noise charge and excess noise factor for the dark current was measured over a range of shaping times, temperatures, and bias voltages. The noise performance of SiC APDs in applications such as gamma ray or x-ray spectroscopy will be highly dependent on the achievement of low bulk leakage current at the operating point. Here, an ionization coefficient ratio (k=α/β) of 0.078 was found.

Feasibility of 4H-SiC epitaxy on SiCOI substrates has been demonstrated, with high quality of obtained layers. Power Schottky diodes were designed and fabricated on these new structures, and exhibited very interesting electrical performance, particularly in reverse mode, with Vbr ∼ 1000 V. This technology is very promising for the realization of monolithic SiC power systems.

Possible applications for porous SiC (PSC) are addressed and related innovative aspects discussed. The formation and properties of PSC itself are considered first, since they define the area where PSC can be used. Then epitaxial growth on PSC substrates is reviewed in detail, with the emphasis on the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique. Next, new applications featuring the in-diffusion of V and Si into PSC for obtaining semi-insulating material and autodoping of GaN epitaxial layers from PSC substrates are presented.

We have examined specimens of high-resistivity, and semi-insulating, 4H-SiC before and after thermal annealing at 1600 °C, using Optical Admittance Spectroscopy. We have found enhanced ultraviolet response in most specimens. Enhanced activation of previously undetected V impurities has also been observed. Peaks believed to be attributable to complex V-related defects were greatly reduced by annealing. The annealing was in addition to a thermal oxidation at 1150 °C for 4 hours. The purpose of the oxidation was to remove surface-related deep levels known to be present in polished SiC. Transition metal impurities in these bulk specimens were quantified by SIMS. In specimens where Ti was not detected by SIMS, no further activation of Ti centers was detected by Optical Admittance Spectroscopy.

Using site-specific plan-view transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and lightemission imaging (LEI), we have identified SFs formed during forward biasing of 4H-SiC PiN diodes. These SFs are bounded by Shockley partial dislocations and are formed by shear strain rather than by condensation of vacancies or interstitials. Detailed analysis using TEM diffraction contrast experiments reveal SFs with leading carbon-core Shockley partial dislocations as well as with the silicon-core partial dislocations observed in plastic deformation of 4H-SiC at elevated temperatures. The leading Shockley partials are seen to relieve both tensile and compressive strain during PiN diode operation, suggesting the presence of a complex and inhomogeneous strain field in the 4H-SiC layer.

Silicon carbide based metal/oxide/semiconductor (MOS) devices are well suited for operation in chemically reactive high temperature ambients. The response of catalytic gate SiC MOS sensors to hydrogen-containing species has been assumed to be due to the formation of a dipole layer at the metal/oxide interface, which gives rise to a voltage translation of the high frequency capacitance voltage (C-V) curve. From in-situ C-V spectroscopy, performed in a controlled gaseous environment, we have discovered that high temperature (800 K) exposure to hydrogen results in (i) a flat band voltage occurring at a more negative bias than in oxygen and (ii) the transition from accumulation to inversion occurring over a relatively narrow voltage range. In oxygen, this transition is broadened indicating the creation of a large number of interface states. We interpret these results as arising from two independent phenomena – a chemically induced shift in the metal/semiconductor work function difference and the passivation/creation of charged states (DIT) at the SiO2/SiC interface. Our results are important for both chemical sensing and electronic applications. MOS capacitance gas sensors typically operate in constant capacitance mode. Since the slope of the C-V curve changes dramatically with gas exposure, we discuss how sensor-to-sensor reproducibility and device response time are influenced by the choice of operating point. For electronic applications understanding the environmentally induced changes in DIT is crucial to designing drift-free MOS devices. Our results are applicable to n-type SiC MOS devices in general, independent of the specifics of sample fabrication.

A novel technique to reduce planar defects in 3C-SiC is to grow it on “undulant-Si” substrates, on which the surface forms countered slopes oriented in the [110] and [110] directions. In the initial stage of 3C-SiC growth, step flow epitaxy occurs on each slope of the substrate, reducing the anti-phase boundaries. Then, the stacking faults in the (111) and (111) planes are gradually annihilated by combining with counter-stacking faults, while those parallel to (111) and (111) vanish. The freestanding 3C-SiC exhibits anisotropy in its electrical properties. The origin of the anisotropy in electrical properties is discussed by referring to the results of X-ray diffraction study.

The current transport mechanism in non-annealed Ohmic contact metallizations on p-type 6H-SiC formed by using focused ion beam (FIB) surface-modification and direct-write metal deposition is reported, and the properties of such focused ion beam assisted non-annealed contacts are discussed. The process uses a Ga focused ion beam to modify the surface of the semiconductor with different doses, and then introduces an organometallic compound in the Ga ion beam, to effect the direct-write deposition of a metal on the modified surface. Contact resistance measurements by the transmission line method produced values in the low 10-4 Ω cm2 range for surface-modified and direct-write Pt and W non-annealed contacts, and mid 10-5 Ω cm2 range for surface-modified and pulse laser deposited TiN contacts. The current transport mechanism of these contacts was examined and found to proceed mainly by tunneling through the metal-modified-semiconductor interface layer.

The interface properties of MOS capacitors and MOSFETs were characterized using the (0001), (1120), and (0338) faces of 4H-SiC. (0001) and (1120) correspond to (111) and (110) in cubic structure. (0338) is semi-equivalent to (100). The interface states near the conduction band edge are discussed based on the capacitance and conductance measurements of n-type MOS capacitors at a low temperature and room temperature. The (0338) face indicated the smallest interface state density near the conduction band edge and highest channel mobility in n-channel MOSFETs among these faces.

Aluminum (Al) and argon (Ar) ions were implanted into n-type 4H-SiC epitaxial layers at 600 °C. The energy of the ions was 160 keV at a dose of 2 × 1016 cm-2. After annealing at 1600 °C for 5–60 minutes, Schottky diodes were fabricated on the ion implanted samples. Deep Level Transient Spectroscopy (DLTS) was used to characterize ion implantation induced defects. A defect at EC-0.18 eV was observed in the Al+ implanted devices annealed for five and fifteen minutes. However, annealing for 30 minutes produced an additional deeper defect at EC -0.24 eV. This defect annealed out after a sixty minute anneal. DLTS studies of Ar+ implanted devices showed six defect levels at EC -0.18 eV, EC -0.23 eV, EC -0.31 eV, EC -0.38eV, EC -0.72 eV, and EC -0.81eV. These defects are attributed to intrinsic-related defects. It is suggested that “hot” implantation of Al+ inhibits the formation of intrinsic-related defects. While “hot” implantation of Ar+ into 4H-SiC does not reduce the concentration of the vacancies and interstitials.

The influence of two types of structural defects on Schottky diodes in 4H-SiC is investigated. First, a structural transformation that takes place during oxidation or annealing of heavily n-doped wafers is studied using X-ray diffraction, high resolution TEM, secondary electron imaging (SEI), photoluminescence, and electrical measurements on Schottky diodes. Lamellae of 3C SiC with six bilayers are introduced primarily in the heavily doped substrates, and to a lesser extent in the lightly doped epilayers. Lowered Schottky barrier heights result and are spatially correlated to the 3C phase. The 3C lamellae exhibit charge contrast in SEI images where they intersect the surface. Second, we study isolated screw dislocations and show preliminary evidence that they are not the main factor controlling Schottky barrier height and ideality in Schottky diodes in lower-doped 4H-SiC wafers.

A brief survey is given of some recent result of boron diffusion in low doped n-type (intrinsic) and p-type 4H-SiC. Aluminum diffusion and solubility limit in 4H-SiC are also discussed. Ion implantation of boron has been performed in epitaxial material to form a diffusion source but also epitaxial 4H-SiC structures, with heavily boron or aluminum doped layers prepared by vapor phase epitaxy have been studied. Heat treatments have been made at temperatures ranging from 1100 to 2050°C for 5 minutes up to 64 h. Secondary ion mass spectrometry has been utilized for analysis. For boron diffusion in acceptor doped 4H-SiC, 4×1019 Al atoms/cm3, an activation energy of 5.3 eV has been determined and a strong dependence on Al content for the diffusion coefficient is revealed. Transient enhanced diffusion of ion-implanted boron in intrinsic 4H-SiC samples is discussed. Solubility limits of ∼1×1020 Al/cm3 (1700°C) and <1×1020 B/cm3 (1900°C) have been deduced.

Homoepitaxial 4H-SiC film growth has been carried out at temperatures as low as 1000°C on 4H-SiC of Si-face and C-face by microwave plasma chemical vapor deposition method. The extent of step-bunching of those films grown on C-face was low in comparison with that on Si-face, although large and irregular shaped step-bunching was occurred in both films grown on Si-face and C-face. For the first step to application for the electrical devices, the electrical properties of the μPCVD grown films was characterized by fabricating simple pn-junction structure. The obtained SiC films indicated n-type conductivity and the amount of background donor impurities of the films grown on C-face substrates were lower by one order than that on Si-face.

A circuit pattern etching of a Silicon-carbide (SiC) surface was conducted with KrF excimer laser irradiation in the presence of HF and H2O2 mixed solutions. SiC have excellent properties of a high hardness, high melting point, wide band gap, high resistance to radiation and chemical stability. This material has come to attract attention as an integrated circuit material for high resistance to environment. However, the material is very difficult in minute processing by the photo-lithography because of its chemical stability. Thus, we developed the new etching method in which a SiC surface was photo-oxidized with H2O or H2O2 by using excimer laser irradiation and was etched by HF water solution. In this experiment, the mixed solution was poured into the thin gap between an Al2O3 glass and the SiC surface with capillary phenomenon. A patterned excimer laser light was, then, irradiated on the SiC surface. The H2O or H2O2 in the reaction solution was photo-dissociated, and the photo-dissociated active oxygen reacted with the SiC. CO2 and SiO2 were formed only on the part exposed by the pattered light forcibly, and an oxidized layer was formed. In this chemical reaction, the CO2 evaporated, and the SiO2 remained on the sample surface. The SiO2 layer was then dissolved by the HF water solution. Thus, etching was conducted by the repetition of the forced oxidization of the SiC and the dissolving of the oxidized layer. In this experiment, the most effective conditions were 20% of H2O2 water solution, 15% HF water solution and 256mJ/cm2 of KrF excimer laser. The etching depth was 80 Å at the laser shot number of 10000. It significantly improved compared with that of using an ArF excimer laser (256mJ/cm2, 193nm), 50 Å.

We report, for the first time, the growth of thermal oxides on silicon carbide at temperatures below 900 °C using a novel afterglow thermal reactor. Flowing afterglows of microwave plasmas have been used for decades to study fundamental chemical reactions and in recent years they are employed as rich atomic oxygen sources for one of the principal techniques of polymeric photoresist removal in IC plants around the globe. The advantage of afterglow generation of a high flux of reactive species is that microwave plasmas may be excited inside clean quartz tubing and further the plasma potential of such discharges is less than 10 electron volts, which is far below the sputtering threshold of most materials, lowering the chance of contamination. In our case, we have integrated an afterglow source with a vacuum furnace system. The substrates to be oxidized are placed in the hot zone of the furnace where they are exposed to the flowing afterglow at a pressure near 1 Torr. The afterglow chemistry generated from pure oxygen traveling through the source includes O2, atomic oxygen, and excited states of O2. All ions and electrons generated by the plasma source are confined to the microwave cavity limits and photons are excluded by trapping techniques. The wafers in the furnace are exposed to a rich chemistry of afterglow species that were generated by non-thermal means. The furnace temperature alone controls the chemical reaction between the afterglow species and the substrates. We present the results of oxide growth on 4H and 6H silicon carbide substrates over a range of temperature. An example result is over 200Å of film grown at 800 °C in 2 hours. Atmospheric processing in O2 at 1050 °C would require 14 hours to grow a similar thickness on SiC. Possible mechanisms and oxide properties will also be discussed.

SiC wafers with an RMS roughness of 1.5 nm were bonded in a dedicated ultrahigh vacuum bonding chamber. Successful fusion of wafers was observed at temperatures as low as 800°C under a uniaxial mechanical stress of 20 MPa. Cross-section transmission electron microscopy (XTEM) of a specimen bonded at 1100°C revealed parts of the interface where wafers were in intimate contact, while other parts contained an up to 3 nm thick amorphous carbon interlayer. The bonded SiC retained its high crystalline quality; no extended defects emanating from the interface were observed within the sampling region. Electrical measurements showed that the azimuthal orientation of the bonded couple significantly influences the electrical character of the junction.

We report our first results using a ultra high vacuum chemical vapor deposition (UHV-CVD) system to form Ge quantum dots on off-axis SiC substrates. Pure SiH4 and hydrogen-diluted GeH4 were used as gas precursors. The SiC substrates were chemically cleaned using the modified RCA process and the SiO2 layer was removed in-situ under a low SiH4 flow rate at a temperature between 1030°C and 1080°C. The Ge quantum dots were grown at a temperature of 750°C. In-situ reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) was used to monitor the surface cleaning and the Ge quantum dot growth. Ex-situ scanning electron microscope and atomic force microscopy were used to confirm the presence of Ge dots. The observed dots are smaller (350 Å width and 100 Å height) than similar Ge dots grown on Si.

Nanostructured and thick SiC coatings have been successfully deposited on Si and graphite substrates by thermal plasma physical vapor deposition (TPPVD) using ultrafine SiC powder as a starting material. The control of processing parameters such as substrate temperature, composition of plasma gases, permits to the deposition of SiC coatings with a variety of microstructures and with various morphologies from dense to columnar. The maximum deposition rate reached 200 nm/s. Seebeck coefficient up to −480 μV/K was obtained for the non-doped coatings with stoichiometric composition. Nitrogen doping to the coatings made it possible to decrease the electrical resistivity from 10-2∼10-3 to 10-4∼10-5 Ωm and showing the maximum power factor of 1.0×10-3 Wm-1K-2 at 973 K.