Structure and formation mechanism of morphological defects with stacking faults in thick 4H-SiC epilayers

IF 3.8 2区材料科学 Q2 MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY

Vacuum Pub Date : 2025-05-11 DOI:10.1016/j.vacuum.2025.114405

Pin Wang , Yong Li , Lei Xu , Yifei Li , Pengxiang Hou , Jiulong Wang , Jing Wang , Le Yu , Zheyang Li , Rui Jin

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Abstract

Morphological defects with stacking faults (SFs) not only affect the uniformity of the epilayer surface, but also create leakage paths for SiC power devices, severely limiting device performance. This study sheds light on the structure and formation mechanism of a triangular defect, characterized by two groove sides and one step bunching side, with a SF incorporated within defect. Peak-valley-peak morphological structures are observed on grooves and step bunching, in which the maximum depths are 2.6 μm and 5.5 nm, respectively. Photoluminescence from multiple triangular defects show Frank type SFs with emission peaks of 457 nm, 530 nm, and 553 nm. In comparison, line-shaped defects without groove features exhibit simpler SF configurations. Combined molten KOH etching, micro-Raman spectroscopy and scanning transmission electron microscopy reveal higher strain and enhanced localized lattice distortion at the 4H/SF boundary in triangular defects than in line-shaped defects. The origin of groove morphology could be attributed to the preferential etching of hydrogen in the high strain regions.

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厚4H-SiC层中层错形态缺陷的结构及形成机制

具有层错的形态缺陷不仅影响薄膜表面的均匀性，而且会造成SiC功率器件的泄漏通路，严重限制器件的性能。本研究揭示了一种三角形缺陷的结构和形成机制，该缺陷具有两个凹槽边和一步聚束边的特征，缺陷内包含一个SF。在凹槽和阶梯聚束上观察到峰-谷-峰形态结构，最大深度分别为2.6 μm和5.5 nm。多三角形缺陷的光致发光表现为Frank型SFs，发射峰分别为457nm、530nm和553nm。相比之下，没有凹槽特征的线形缺陷具有更简单的SF结构。结合熔融KOH刻蚀、微拉曼光谱和扫描透射电子显微镜，发现三角形缺陷的4H/SF边界应变更高，局域晶格畸变增强。槽形的形成可归因于氢在高应变区优先蚀刻。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Vacuum 工程技术-材料科学：综合

CiteScore

6.80

自引率

17.50%

发文量

审稿时长

34 days

期刊介绍： Vacuum is an international rapid publications journal with a focus on short communication. All papers are peer-reviewed, with the review process for short communication geared towards very fast turnaround times. The journal also published full research papers, thematic issues and selected papers from leading conferences. A report in Vacuum should represent a major advance in an area that involves a controlled environment at pressures of one atmosphere or below. The scope of the journal includes: 1. Vacuum; original developments in vacuum pumping and instrumentation, vacuum measurement, vacuum gas dynamics, gas-surface interactions, surface treatment for UHV applications and low outgassing, vacuum melting, sintering, and vacuum metrology. Technology and solutions for large-scale facilities (e.g., particle accelerators and fusion devices). New instrumentation ( e.g., detectors and electron microscopes). 2. Plasma science; advances in PVD, CVD, plasma-assisted CVD, ion sources, deposition processes and analysis. 3. Surface science; surface engineering, surface chemistry, surface analysis, crystal growth, ion-surface interactions and etching, nanometer-scale processing, surface modification. 4. Materials science; novel functional or structural materials. Metals, ceramics, and polymers. Experiments, simulations, and modelling for understanding structure-property relationships. Thin films and coatings. Nanostructures and ion implantation.