Method for producing single crystal with reduced number of crystal defects

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10094043-B2
Application number	US-201515506478-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 25, 2015
Priority date	Sep 12, 2014
Publication date	Oct 9, 2018
Grant date	Oct 9, 2018

Abstract

A method for producing a single crystal, wherein the space is adjusted to a predetermined distance by measuring a distance from a reference height position at a predetermined height above a melt surface to a lower end part of an in-furnace structure in a state wherein the in-furnace structure above the melt surface is installed in a pull chamber, obtaining a lower end part position error which is a difference between measured distance and a distance from the previously set reference height position to the lower end part of the in-furnace structure, obtaining a target distance from the melt surface to the reference height position by adding the lower end part position error and a distance from the reference height position to a melt surface position, and adjusting a distance from an initial position of the melt surface to the reference height position such that the target distance is attained.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for producing a single crystal, the method by which, when a single crystal is grown by a Czochralski method by pulling the single crystal upwardly by a wire from raw material melt in a crucible, a single crystal is grown by adjusting a space between a melt surface of the raw material melt and a lower end part of an in-furnace structure which is disposed above the melt surface to a predetermined distance, wherein
the space is adjusted to a predetermined distance by measuring a distance from a reference height position at a predetermined height located in a pull chamber and above the melt surface to the lower end part of the in-furnace structure in a state in which the in-furnace structure above the melt surface is installed in the pull chamber, obtaining a lower end part position error which is a difference between the measured distance and a distance from the previously set reference height position to the lower end part of the in-furnace structure, obtaining a target distance from the melt surface to the reference height position by adding the lower end part position error and a distance from the reference height position to a melt surface position, and adjusting a distance from an initial position of the melt surface to the reference height position such that the target distance is attained,
the distance from the reference height position at the predetermined height located in the pull chamber and above the melt surface to the lower end part of the in-furnace structure is measured by closing the lower end part of the in-furnace structure with a flat plate to form a flat surface, and unwinding the wire by a wire driving portion to move downward the seed crystal that is held by the seed crystal holder located at the end of the wire, and
a distance that the seed crystal is moved from the reference height position to the flat surface is used as the distance from the reference height position at the predetermined height located in the pull chamber and above the melt surface to the lower end part of the in-furnace structure.

2. The method for producing a single crystal according to claim 1 , wherein
when the target distance is obtained, the target distance is obtained by estimating a length by which the in-furnace structure above the melt surface subjected to measurement of the distance to the lower end part of the in-furnace structure changes by thermal expansion, obtaining, when the distance from the reference height position to the lower end part of the in-furnace structure is set in advance, a thermal expansion error which is a difference between a previously set thermal expansion reference length of the in-furnace structure and the estimated length, and adding up the thermal expansion error, the lower end part position error, and the distance from the reference height position to the melt surface position.

Assignees

• Shinetsu Handotai Kk

Inventors

• Takashima Shou
• Miyahara Yuuichi
• Iwasaki Atsushi

Classifications

• C30B29/06

  Silicon · CPC title

• C30B15/22 Primary

  Stabilisation or shape controlling of the molten zone near the pulled crystal; Controlling the section of the crystal · CPC title

• C30B15/203

  the relationship of pull rate (v) to axial thermal gradient (G) · CPC title

• C30B15/20 Primary

  Controlling or regulating (controlling or regulating in general G05) · CPC title