SiC ingot and method of manufacturing SiC ingot

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11459669-B2
Application number	US-201816223185-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 18, 2018
Priority date	Dec 22, 2017
Publication date	Oct 4, 2022
Grant date	Oct 4, 2022

Abstract

A SiC ingot includes a core portion; and a surface layer that is formed on a plane of the core portion in a growing direction, and a coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the surface layer is smaller than a coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the core portion.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A SiC ingot consisting of:
a core portion; and
a surface layer that is formed on a plane of the core portion in a growing direction,
wherein the SiC ingot consists of the core portion and the surface layer immediately after crystal growth,
wherein a coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the surface layer is smaller than a coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the core portion,
the surface layer is the topmost layer of the SiC ingot,
the surface layer has a concentration of dopant, which is 1.5 times or more as high as a concentration of dopant of the core portion, and
a thickness of the surface layer is 0.3 mm or more and is smaller than that of the core portion.

2. The SiC ingot according to claim 1 , wherein the coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the surface layer is smaller than the coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the core portion by 0.1 ppm/° C. or more.

3. The SiC ingot according to claim 1 , wherein an element is doped in the surface layer and the core portion, and the element is nitrogen or aluminum.

4. A method of manufacturing a SiC ingot comprising:
a first step of causing a single crystal that becomes a core portion to grow in one plane of a seed crystal;
a second step of causing a surface layer to grow in a plane of the core portion on a side opposite to the seed crystal in an atmosphere with higher concentration of dopant gas than that in the first step; and
a third step of cooling a produced SiC ingot after the second step,
wherein the surface layer is the topmost layer of the SiC ingot,
the surface layer has a concentration of dopant, which is 1.5 times or more as high as a concentration of dopant of the core portion, and
the first step, the second step and the third steps are performed one and not more than one time respectively.

5. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 4 ,
wherein the SiC ingot obtained through the third step includes
a core portion, and
a surface layer that is formed on a plane of the core portion in a growing direction, and

wherein a coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the surface layer is smaller than a coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the core portion.

6. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 5 ,
wherein in the first step, raw materials of the SiC ingot are heated to a temperature of 2400° C. to 2600° C., and argon gas or both argon gas and dopant gas are supplied, and
wherein in the second step, both argon gas and dopant gas are supplied.

7. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 4 ,
wherein dopant gas is not supplied in the first step.

8. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 4 ,
wherein dopant gas is supplied in the first step.

9. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 4 ,
wherein, in the third step, temperature difference between temperature at a center of the ingot and temperature at an outer peripheral portion of the ingot is controlled to be +20° C. or less.

10. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 9 ,
wherein, in the third step, the temperature at the center of the ingot is controlled to be less than or equal to the temperature at the outer peripheral portion of the ingot.

11. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 5 ,
wherein the coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the surface layer is smaller than the coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the core portion by 0.1 ppm/° C. or more.

12. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 5 ,
wherein an element is doped in the surface layer and the core portion, and the element is nitrogen or aluminum.

13. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 5 ,
wherein a thickness of the surface layer is 0.3 mm or more.

14. The SiC ingot according to claim 1 , wherein
the surface layer has the concentration of dopant, which is 2 times or more than the concentration of dopant of the core portion, and
the surface layer is formed under fixed conditions.

15. The SiC ingot according to claim 1 , wherein the surface layer is formed directly on the core portion.

16. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 4 ,
wherein the surface layer has the concentration of dopant which is 2 times or more than the concentration of dopant of the core portion.

17. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 4 ,
wherein the surface layer is formed directly on the core portion.

18. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 4 ,
wherein the first step is performed under fixed conditions, and
the second step is performed under fixed conditions.

19. The method of manufacturing a SiC ingot according to claim 4 ,
wherein the first step and the second step are performed at same temperature.

20. A SiC ingot is-manufactured by the method according to claim 4 , wherein the SiC ingot consists of:
a core portion; and
a surface layer that is formed on a plane of the core portion in a growing direction,
wherein the SiC ingot consists of the core portion and the surface layer immediately after crystal growth,
wherein a coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the surface layer is smaller than a coefficient of linear thermal expansion of the core portion,
the surface layer is the topmost layer of the SiC ingot,
the surface layer has a concentration of dopant, which is 1.5 times or more as high as a concentration of dopant of the core portion, and
a thickness of the surface layer is 0.3 mm or more and is smaller than that of the core portion.

Assignees

• Showa Denko Kk

Inventors

• Kindaichi Rimpei
• Fujikawa Yohei
• Okuno Yoshishige

Classifications

• H10P14/2926

  Crystal orientations · CPC title

• H10P14/2904

  Silicon carbide · CPC title

• C30B23/002

  Controlling or regulating · CPC title

• C30B29/36 Primary

  Carbides · CPC title

• C30B29/605

  Products containing multiple oriented crystallites, e.g. columnar crystallites · CPC title