Papers by Author: Siegmund Greulich-Weber

Abstract: In non-annealed 6H-SiC samples that were electron irradiated at room temperature, a new EPR signal due to a S=1 defect center with exceptionally large zero-field splitting (D = +652•10-4 cm-1) has been observed under illumination. A positive sign of D demonstrates that the spin-orbit contribution to the zero-field splitting exceeds by far that of the spin-spin interaction. A principal axis of the fine structure tilted by 59° against the crystal c-axis as well as the exceptionally high zero-field splitting D can be qualitatively understood by the occurrence of additional close-lying defect levels in defect clusters resulting in comparatively large second-order spin-orbit coup¬ling. A tentative assignment to vacancy clusters is supported by the observed annealing behavior.

Abstract: We report on constructive methods providing a large range of high purity porous SiC products. All methods are based on modified sol-gel processes combined with carbothermal re¬duction. We obtain monodisperse regular pores of well defined diameters by using carbon sphere templates which are removed after SiC infiltration. A different way is a sol-gel based conversion of graphite bodies into SiC, which transfers the porosity from the graphite matrix into the final SiC product. Thus a large variety of porosity features are available, originating either from natural poro¬sity of graphite or from priorly created nano-/ microstructures in the carbonaceous base material. Whereas all our pristine porous sol-gel derived silicon carbide products are semi-insulating, doping is possible, during the growth to modifiy the electrical and optical properties.

Abstract: EPR and ESE in nitrogen doped 4H- and 6H-SiC show besides the well known triplet lines of 14N on quasi-cubic (Nc,k) and hexagonal (Nc,h) sites additional lines (Nx) of comparatively low intensity providing half the hf splitting of Nc,k. Frequently re-interpreted as spin-forbid¬den lines, arising from Nc,k pairs and triads or resulting from hopping conductivity, only re¬cent¬ly the theoretical calculation of the corresponding g-tensors lead to a tentative model of distant NC donor pairs on inequivalent lattice sites which are coupled to S = 1 assuming a fine-struc¬ture splitting too small to be observed in the EPR and ESE experiments. In this work, we pre¬sent ESE nutation measurements confirming S = 1 for the Nx center. Analysing the nutation frequencies in comparison with that of the Nc,k (S = 1/2) spectrum as well as the line width of ESE and EPR spectra we obtain a rough estimate between 5104 cm-1 and 50104 cm-1 for the fine-structure splitting demonstrating efficient spin-coupling between nitrogen donors in 4H-SiC.

Abstract: The solar cell concept presented here is based on 3C-SiC nano- or microwires and conju¬gated polymers. Therefore the silicon carbide wires are fabricated by a sol-gel route including a car-bothermal reduction step, allowing growth with predetermined uniform diameters between 0.1 and 2μm and lengths up to several centimetres. The design of our photovoltaic device is therein based on a p-i-n structure, well known e.g. from silicon photovoltaics, involving an intrinsic semiconduc¬tor as the central photoactive layer, sandwiched between two complementary doped wide-bandgap semiconductors giving the driving force for charge separation. In our case the 3C-SiC microwires act as the electron acceptor and simultaneously as carrier material for all involved components of the photovoltaic element.

Abstract: Scandium can be used to influence the stoichiometry of SiC during growth of the hexagonal polytypes. Using PL-EPR and total energy calculations in the framework of density functional theory, scandium is predicted to be built in predominantly at the Si-sublattice in form of ScSi acceptors with acceptor levels at 0.55 eV (6H-SiC) and 0.48 eV (4H-SiC). In addition, new PL-EPR spectra are found with a large anisotropy in the g-tensor suggesting defect pairs as an origin.

Abstract: The microscopic origin of the Nx EPR-lines observed in heavily nitrogen doped 4H-SiC and 6H-SiC is discussed with the help of EPR parameters calculated from first principles. Based on the symmetry of the g-tensors we propose a model with distant NC donor pairs on inequivalent lattice sites which are coupled to S=1 centers but with nearly vanishing zero-field splittings, giving rise to an essentially S=1/2 like spectrum. The proposed aggregation in neutral donor pairs can contribute to the saturation of the free concentration observed in heavily nitrogen doped SiC.

Abstract: D-band electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) measurements as well as X and Q-band field-swept Electron Spin Echo (ESE) and pulsed Electron Nuclear Double Resonance (ENDOR) studies were performed on a series of n-type 4H-SiC wafers grown by different techniques including sublimation sandwich method (SSM), physical vapor transport (PVT) and modified Lely method. Depending on the C/Si ratio and the growth temperature the n-type 4H-SiC wafers revealed, besides a triplet due to nitrogen residing on the cubic site (Nc), two nitrogen (N) related EPR spectra with g||=2.0055, g⊥=2.0010 and g||=2.0063, g⊥=2.0005 with different intensities. In the samples with low C/Si ratio the EPR spectrum with g|| =2.0055, g⊥=2.0010 consists of a triplet with low intensity which is tentatively explained as a N-related complex, while in the samples with high C/Si ratio the triplet is transformed into one structureless line of high intensity, which is explained as being due to an exchange interaction between N donors. In the samples grown at low temperature with enhanced carbon concentration the EPR line with g||=2.0063, g⊥=2.0005 and a small hyperfine (hf) interaction dominates the EPR spectrum. It is attributed to N on the hexagonal lattice site. The interpretation of the EPR data is supported by activation energies and donor concentrations obtained from Hall effect measurements for three donor levels in this series of 4H-SiC samples.

Abstract: We have investigated the growth of SiC, following a modified sol-gel process, which not only allows the realization of 3D photonic bandgap materials but also is useful for various SiC applications like templates in medicine or filters in harsh environment. Depending on the sol-gel annealing procedure one obtains macro-porous SiC, amorphous SiC, or from nano to micrometer-sized 3C-SiC single crystals. At low annealing temperatures preferably nanowires are grown. Via various sol-gel-annealing procedures we are able to prepare single crystals with sizes ranging from several nm up to several 100 %m, while the resulting polytype only depends on the annealing temperature available. Not only for photonic applications useable procedures for doping with shallow level donors and acceptors as well as with deep level defects are essential. We show that controlled doping is possible either during the sol-gel preparation or via the gas phase during the following annealing procedure.

Abstract: In this paper, we report on a photoluminescence (PL) and EPR study of several semiinsulating (SI) 4H SiC samples showing the different compensation regimes due to the presence of V4+ and V3+of different concentration. The samples which contain only V3+ indicates the compensation regime NV≅ND-NA>0 with the Fermi level located in the upper half of the band gap. The presence of V4+ along with V3+ in the other two set of samples indicates the SI behavior of the samples with compensation regime NV>NA-ND>0. Considering that the samples revealed EPR spectrum of vanadium V3+, position of the Fermi level should be also in the upper half of the band gap and mixed conductivity could be expected. UD-3 PL spectrum was observed in vanadium doped SI 4H SiC presented in the samples in V3+/V4+ and V4+/V5+ charge states with compensation regime NV>NA-ND>0. The data obtained prove that the PL and EPR are suitable techniques in determination SI yield in SiC crystal.