Characterization of Bulk <111> 3C-SiC Single Crystals Grown on 4H-SiC by the CF-PVT Method

Because of the formation of DPB (Double Positioning Boundary) when starting from a hexagonal <0001> seed, DPB-free 3C-SiC single crystals have never been reported up to now. In a recent work we showed that, using adapted nucleation conditions, one could grow thick 3C-SiC single crystal almost free of DPB [1]. In this work we present the results of a multi-scale investigation of such crystals. Using birefringence microscopy, EBSD and HR-TEM, we find evidence of a continuous improvement of the crystal quality with increasing thickness in the most defected area, at the sample periphery. On the contrary, in the large DPB-free area, the SF density remains rather constant from the interface to the surface. The LTPL spectra collected at 5K on the upper part of samples present a nice resolution of multiple bound exciton features (up to m=5) which clearly shows the high (electronic) quality of our 3C-SiC material.