Micropipe and dislocation density reduction in 6H-SiC and 4H-SiC structures grown by liquid phase epitaxy

We investigated silicon carbide (SiC) epitaxial layers grown by liquid phase epitaxy (LPE). The layers were grown on 6H-SiC and 4H-SiC well-oriented (0001) 35 mm diameter commercial wafers as well as on 6H-SiC Lely crystals. A few experiments were also done on off-axis 6H-SiC and 4H-SiC substrates. Layer thickness and growth rate ranged from 0.5 to 50 microns and 0.5 to 10 µm/h, respectively. Layers were investigated by x-ray diffraction, x-ray topography, and selective chemical etching in molten KOH. It was found that dislocation and micropipe density in LPE grown epitaxial layers were significantly reduced compared with the defect densities in the substrates.