This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project proposes a new approach to the growth of large-area, low-cost, high-quality beta silicon carbide ((-SiC) epitaxial layers grown on silicon wafers. The proposed process is based on a vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) growth technique. In VLS growth, a solvent layer is supplied with carbon by reaction with vapor-phase hydrocarbons, while epitaxial growth occurs from the liquid phase. Thus, the process may be viewed as a hybrid CVD/LPE technique. To overcome the 20% lattice mismatch, a thin (10 to 100 nm) (-SiC buffer layer is formed on a silicon substrate using a chemical conversion process. This approach has many potential advantages that stem from the hybrid nature of the technique. It combines many of the advantages of liquid-phase epitaxy and chemical vapor deposition. An important feature of this technique is the flexibility with which doped epitaxial layers can be grown. Beta silicon carbide is widely recognized as the most promising semiconductor material for high-temperature electronics and high-power microwave electronic devices.
