Monocrystalline boules of 15R-type material were grown by sublimation, and the Vickers hardness of a Si-terminated (00▪1) face was measured at 25 to 1300C. The hardness decreased with increasing temperature, from about 30GPa at room temperature to about 10GPa at 1300C. The fracture toughness was estimated to be about 1.0MPam½ at room temperature. Transmission electron microscopic investigation of the dislocations which were introduced by indentation at 900 and 1300C showed that they were activated mainly on the basal plane. Most of them consisted of a single activated dislocation, predominantly on the basal plane. Many consisted of a single leading partial, without the corresponding trailing partial.

Deformation-Induced Dislocations in 15R-SiC Grown by Sublimation. M.H.Hong, P.Pirouz, J.Chung, S.Y.Yoon, J.L.Demenet: Philosophical Magazine Letters, 2001, 81[12], 823-31