Study on Evolution of Micropipes from Hexagonal Voids in 4H-SiC Crystals by Cathodoluminescence Imaging

This paper presents an investigation on micropipe evolution from hexagonal voids in physical vapor transport-grown 4H-SiC single crystals using the cathodoluminescence (CL) imaging technique. Complementary techniques optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive spectroscop...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Published in:Microscopy and microanalysis 2021-02, Vol.27 (1), p.215-226
Main Authors: Arora, Aman, Patel, Ankit, Yadav, Brajesh S., Goyal, Anshu, Thakur, Om P., Garg, Arun K., Raman, Ramachandran
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cathodoluminescence
Crucibles
Crystal growth
Crystals
Evolution
Graphite
Imaging
Imaging techniques
Light microscopy
Micrographia
Optical microscopy
Scanning electron microscopy
Silicon carbide
Single crystals
Spectroscopy
Temperature
Voids
Citations: Items that this one cites
Items that cite this one
Online Access:Get full text
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
Description
Summary:This paper presents an investigation on micropipe evolution from hexagonal voids in physical vapor transport-grown 4H-SiC single crystals using the cathodoluminescence (CL) imaging technique. Complementary techniques optical microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) are also used to understand the formation mechanism of hexagonal voids along with the origin of pipes from these voids. The ability of CL to image variations along the depth of the sample provides new insights on how micropipes are attached to hexagonal voids that lie deep within the bulk single crystals. CL imaging confirms that multiple micropipes can originate from a single hexagonal void. EDS mapping shows that the inside of the micropipe walls exhibits higher levels of carbon. Investigation of the seed region by optical imaging shows that improper fixing of the seed to the crucible lid is the root cause for the formation of hexagonal voids that subsequently lead to micropipe formation.
ISSN:1431-9276
1435-8115
DOI:10.1017/S1431927621000039