Stable and high-speed SiC bulk growth without dendrites by the HTCVD method

• Growth conditions are investigated to obtain high-quality SiC bulk crystals without dendrites by the HTCVD method.
• Temperature distributions inside the reactor are simulated computationally.
• Effects of a vertical temperature gradient inside the crystal are investigated by growth experiments.
• By grown under a high vertical temperature gradient in the crystal, a thick crystal without dendrites is obtained.

We investigate growth conditions to obtain high-quality SiC bulk crystals by the High-Temperature Chemical Vapor Deposition (HTCVD) method. Formation of dendrite crystals, which sometimes occurs on the growth front and degrades the material quality, is raised as an issue. We find that a bulk crystal growth under a high vertical temperature gradient, where the temperature of the back side of the bulk crystal is much lower than that of the crystal surface, suppresses the formation of dendrite crystals. Under growth conditions with a high temperature gradient, a very high-speed growth of 2.4 mm/h is achieved without the formation of dendrite crystals. Growth of a thick 4H–SiC bulk crystal without the dendrites is demonstrated and the quality of a grown crystal is evaluated.