Suppression of 3C-Inclusion Formation during Growth of 4H-SiC Si-Face Homoepitaxial Layers with a 1° Off-Angle
by
Keiko Masumoto 1,2,*, Hirokuni Asamizu 1,3, Kentaro Tamura 1,3, Chiaki Kudou 1,4, Johji Nishio 1,5, Kazutoshi Kojima 1,2, Toshiyuki Ohno 1,6 and Hajime Okumura 1,2
Keiko Masumoto 1,2,*, Hirokuni Asamizu 1,3, Kentaro Tamura 1,3, Chiaki Kudou 1,4, Johji Nishio 1,5, Kazutoshi Kojima 1,2, Toshiyuki Ohno 1,6 and Hajime Okumura 1,2
1
Partnership for Future Power Electronics Technology, 16-1 Onogawa, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8569, Japan
2
National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Central 2 1-1-1 Umezono, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 305-8568, Japan
3
ROHM Co., Ltd., 21 Saiin Mizosaki-cho, Ukyo-ku, Kyoto 615-8585, Japan
4
Panasonic Corporation, 800 Higashiyama, Uozu, Toyama 937-8585, Japan
5
Toshiba Corporation, 1 Komukai-Toshiba-cho, Saiwai, Kawasaki, Kanagawa 212-8582, Japan
6
Hitachi, Ltd., 1-280 Higashi-koigakubo, Kokubunji-shi, Tokyo 185-8601, Japan
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Materials 2014, 7(10), 7010-7021; https://doi.org/10.3390/ma7107010
Received: 31 July 2014 / Revised: 18 September 2014 / Accepted: 30 September 2014 / Published: 17 October 2014
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Compound Semiconductor Materials 2014)
We grew epitaxial layers on 4H-silicon carbide (SiC) Si-face substrates with a 1° off-angle. The suppression of 3C-inclusion formation during growth at a high C/Si ratio was investigated, because a growth technique with a high C/Si ratio is needed to decrease residual nitrogen incorporation. 3C inclusions were generated both at the interface between the substrate and epitaxial layer, and during epitaxial growth. 3C-SiC nucleation is proposed to trigger the formation of 3C inclusions. We suppressed 3C-inclusion formation by performing deep in situ etching and using a high C/Si ratio, which removed substrate surface damage and improved the 4H-SiC stability, respectively. The as-grown epitaxial layers had rough surfaces because of step bunching due to the deep in situ etching, but the rough surface became smooth after chemical mechanical polishing treatment. These techniques allow the growth of epitaxial layers with 1° off-angles for a wide range of doping concentrations.
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Keywords:
silicon carbide; epitaxial growth; low off-angle; 3C inclusion; in situ etching; C/Si ratio
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MDPI and ACS Style
Masumoto, K.; Asamizu, H.; Tamura, K.; Kudou, C.; Nishio, J.; Kojima, K.; Ohno, T.; Okumura, H. Suppression of 3C-Inclusion Formation during Growth of 4H-SiC Si-Face Homoepitaxial Layers with a 1° Off-Angle. Materials 2014, 7, 7010-7021.
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