One setback that hinders the breakthrough of cubic silicon carbide is the lack of suitable seeding material for sublimation growth methods such as PVT. We present the growth of large area cubic silicon carbide material, up to a diameter of 100 mm, with a sublimation growth process called close spaced PVT (CS-PVT). Freestanding 3C‑SiC seeding layers were grown by a homoepitaxial CVD process. Subsequently CS-PVT was used to grow crystals up to a thickness of 1 mm. To prevent backside sublimation a carbon containing layer was applied as protection. Due to the presence of a wafer bow as well as a rough backside of the used seeds additional effort was necessary to apply the coating. After growth no visible curvature was present independent of the grown layer thickness and sample size. Raman spectroscopy was performed on the seeds and grown crystals, showing that the overall stress level of the material was reduced by CS‑PVT.

Multiscale approaches for the simulation of materials processing are becoming essential to the industrialization of future nanotechnologies, as they allow for a reduction in production costs and an enhancement of devices and applications. Their integration as modules of “digital twins”, i.e., a combined sequence of predictive chemical–physical simulations and trained black-box techniques, should ideally complement the real sequence of processes throughout all development and production stages, starting from the growth of materials, their functional manipulation and finally their integration in nano-devices. To achieve this framework, computational implementations at different space and time scales are necessary, ranging from the atomistic to the macro-scale. In this paper, we propose a general paradigm for the industrially driven computational modeling of materials by deploying a multiscale methodology based on physical–chemical simulations bridging macro, meso and atomic scale. We demonstrate its general applicability by studying two completely different processing examples, i.e., the growth of group IV crystals through physical vapor deposition and their thermal treatment through pulsed laser annealing. We indicate the suitable formalisms, as well as the advantages and critical issues associated with each scale, and show how numerical methods for the solution of the models could be coupled to achieve a complete and effective virtualization of the process. By connecting the process parameters to atomic scale modifications such as lattice defects or faceting, we highlight how a digital twin module can gain intrinsic predictivity far from the pre-assessed training conditions of black-box “Virtual Metrology” techniques.

In this article, sublimation growth of 3C-SiC on 3C-SiC-on-Si seeding layers was evaluated by characterizing the densities of protrusions and stacking faults (SF). Both defects are among the most critical concerning the growth process and the realization of high quality material for device applications. By variation of growth parameters like temperature, growth rate and 3C-SiC-thickness we conducted a series of experiments and characterized these layers by optical microscopy and KOH etching. The protrusion density is predetermined by the seeding layers and was kept at a constant level, whereas a decrease of SF-density was observed with increasing layer thickness during subsequent sublimation growth steps. Therefore, in the case of Sublimation Epitaxy (SE) it has been found appropriate to distinguish between defects that can be reduced during SE and defects that are merely reproduced from the seeding material during sublimation growth. Furthermore, a weak trend towards a decrease of SF-density with increasing growth temperature was observed. The findings in this work demonstrates the potential of SE in growing thick and high-quality 3C-SiC layers if sufficiently good seeding layers were available. Copyright © 2017 VBRI Press.

We investigated the overgrowth of protrusion defects during sublimation growth of cubic silicon carbide (3C-SiC) using freestanding on-axis and off-axis substrates. Three different overgrowth mechanisms were found to contribute to defect elimination: (i) mutual overgrowth by defects of the same type, (ii) real overgrowth by step-flow growth, and (iii) overgrowth by quasi-step-flow growth at surface irregularities. Mechanisms (i) and (iii) are not real overgrowth mechanisms because they are directly linked to the inducing defects themselves or other undesired disturbances of the substrate. However, at high defect densities or for the on-axis substrate, they represent a relevant elimination mechanism. Overgrowth according to (ii) is possible only for off-axis substrates and represents a real elimination mechanism, leading to an improvement of the material quality. In the context of this work, we provide a phenomenological description of the overgrowth principle as well as limitations for the defect elimination, depending on the structure of the protrusions. For the first time, the overgrowth of protrusions has been categorized for different types and qualities of substrates. Fundamental differences were identified, which can lead to a more focused further development of defect elimination in 3C-SiC.

Since the early days of research in the field of the wide band gap semiconductor silicon carbide (SiC), the cubic polytype has been favorable because it exhibits the highest electron mobility. The electronic band gap and electric breakdown are slightly smaller than the hexagonal 4H-SiC. Therefore, the ideal operation range of power electronic devices based on 3C-SiC lies in the mid-voltage range of 400–600 V as it is used in the large application field of electric automotive applications. The current review presents a state-of-the-art overview over the complete processing change from materials growth to device processing.

In this review paper, several new approaches about the 3C-SiC growth are been presented. In fact, despite the long research activity on 3C-SiC, no devices with good electrical characteristics have been obtained due to the high defect density and high level of stress. To overcome these problems, two different approaches have been used in the last years. From one side, several compliance substrates have been used to try to reduce both the defects and stress, while from another side, the first bulk growth has been performed to try to improve the quality of this material with respect to the heteroepitaxial one. From all these studies, a new understanding of the material defects has been obtained, as well as regarding all the interactions between defects and several growth parameters. This new knowledge will be the basis to solve the main issue of the 3C-SiC growth and reach the goal to obtain a material with low defects and low stress that would allow for realizing devices with extremely interesting characteristics.

Free standing 3C-SiC wafers with a dimeter of 50 mm and a thickness of ca. 0.8 mm have been grown on a regular base using 3C-SiC CVD seed transfer from Si wafers to a poly-SiC-carrier and a sublimation epitaxy configuration. Up to the thickness of almost 1 mm, stable growth conditions of the cubic polytype have been achieved. The high supersaturation was kept stable by the proper design of the hot zone that enables a high axial temperature gradient at the growth interface. The Sirich gas phase was realized by the application of a Tantalum getter that was integrated into the graphitebased growth cell. Furthermore, an adaption of the growth setup allowed the growth of 3C material with a diameter of 95 mm and bulk material up to 3 mm on 25 mm diameter. Computer simulations were used to determine the supersaturation of the growth setup for different source-to-seed distances. The minimum supersaturation necessary for stable growth of cubic SiC was found to be higher 0.1 for seed already containing the required 3C polytype.

In recent years, cubic silicon carbide (3C-SiC) has gained increasing interest as semiconductor material for energy saving and optoelectronic applications, such as intermediate-band solar cells, photoelectrochemical water splitting, and quantum key distribution, just to name a few. All these applications critically depend on further understanding of defect behavior at the atomic level and the possibility to actively control distinct defects. In this work, dopants as well as intrinsic defects were introduced into the 3C-SiC material in situ during sublimation growth. A series of isochronal temperature treatments were performed in order to investigate the temperature-dependent annealing behavior of point defects. The material was analyzed by temperature-dependent photoluminescence (PL) measurements. In our study, we found a variation in the overall PL intensity which can be considered as an indication of annealing-induced changes in structure, composition or concentration of point defects. Moreover, a number of dopant-related as well as intrinsic defects were identified. Among these defects, there were strong indications for the presence of the negatively charged nitrogen vacancy complex (NC-VSi)-, which is considered a promising candidate for spin qubits.

In recent times, 3C-SiC is gaining more and more interest in terms of applications for optoelectronics and quantum computing. Cubic SiC exhibits a number of luminescent defects in the near infrared originating from deep electronic levels. Temperature dependent photoluminescence measurements were conducted on n-type and p-type 3C-SiC in order to investigate the formation of dopant related point defects as well as intrinsic point defects and defect complexes. The results indicate a number of V Si , V C and V C C Si related defects which might be suitable candidates for future optoelectronic applications.

We report on the modeling of the temperature field and supersaturation in front of the SiC crystal growth interface of a physical vapor transport growth configuration. The data are compared with experimental results, like the growth of free standing 3C-SiC wafers with a diameter of 50 mm and a thickness of 870 µm. Special emphases is put on the precise handling of the materials properties which include the temperature dependency of the heat and electrical conductivity of the graphite parts at temperatures above 2000 °C.

Superconductor based quantum computing has the major drawback of working temperatures which require liquid helium for cooling. A promising approach to overcome this obstacle for quantum technologies is based on deep level defects in semiconductors, with the nitrogen vacancy (NV) center in diamond being the most prominent example. Unfortunately, diamond in sufficient quality is scarce, which motivated efforts to find similar defects in silicon carbide (SiC). So far, many reports focus on investigations of point defects in irradiated 3C-SiC and as grown material. However, the investigated defects are more or less a product of coincidence for both. While in irradiated material the intentional generation of specific defects is rather challenging, in as purchased material the defects are actually more an unintentional by product of growth and process conditions. This work proposes a new route: the incorporation and control of deep level defects in 3C-SiC by epitaxial sublimation growth. The observed defects in the near infrared show bright luminescence in the 175 K/200 K regime and remain excitable up to 300 K. This could enable working temperatures above the cryogenic limit. The joint origin of all detected defects is assigned to the carbon vacancy.

Cubic silicon carbide (3C‐SiC) is an emerging material with promising properties for various applications in power electronics, energy saving, and quantum technology. In recent years, size and quality of 3C‐SiC substrates reached a level where real applications become tangible. However, there is still a lack of knowledge concerning defects in 3C‐SiC. Point defects can be considered as one of the key defects, as they influence all applications in one way or another. Herein, the growth rate dependent tailoring of point defects—according to probability and density—is presented for bulk 3C‐SiC grown by epitaxial sublimation growth. Photoluminescence characterization reveals a group of four distinct peaks in the near‐infrared which are assumed to have their joint origin in the carbon vacancy. Moreover, indications for a novel Al‐related defect are presented. The observed defects show bright luminescence in the 175 K/200 K regime and remain excitable up to 300 K.

We developed a solution growth process related to the combination of the Vertical Bridgman and Vertical Gradient Freeze in a metal free Si-C melt at growth temperatures of 2300 °C. For this procedure we present a detailed description of the growth process and discuss the influence of different growth parameters on the surface morphology and growth rate. So far, we managed to grow SiC layers with a thickness up to 300 μm. The characterization of the crystal morphology was carried out using SEM images and the metal concentration was estimated using SIMS.