Systems for crystal growth utilizing furnaces, ampoules, and crucibles

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9797061-B2
Application number	US-201514928740-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 30, 2015
Priority date	Nov 30, 2011
Publication date	Oct 24, 2017
Grant date	Oct 24, 2017

Abstract

A system for growing a crystal is provided that includes a crucible, a furnace, and a heat transfer device. The crucible has a first volume to receive therein a material for growing a crystal. The furnace has an ampoule configured to receive the crucible within the ampoule. The furnace is configured to produce a lateral thermal profile combined with a vertical thermal gradient. The heat transfer device is disposed under the crucible and configured to produce a leading edge of growth of the crystal at a bottom of the crucible. The heat transfer device includes at least one elongate member disposed beneath the crucible and extending along a length of the crucible.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A system for growing a crystal, the system comprising:
a crucible having a first volume to receive therein a material for growing a crystal;
a furnace including heating elements and a sealed ampoule, the ampoule interposed between the heating elements and the crucible, the ampoule configured to receive the crucible within the ampoule, the furnace also configured to produce a lateral thermal profile combined with a vertical thermal gradient; and
a heat transfer device disposed under the crucible and within the sealed ampoule, the heat transfer device configured to produce a leading edge of growth of the crystal at a bottom of the crucible, the heat transfer device comprising at least one elongate member disposed beneath the crucible and extending along a length of the crucible, the at least one elongate member disposed within the sealed ampoule and interposed between the crucible and the ampoule, wherein the at least one elongate member comprises at least one of a rod or a pipe.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the bottom of the crucible has a narrower profile.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein the crucible further comprises a channel extending along a lower side of the bottom of the crucible.

4. The system of claim 3 , wherein the channel is one of a concave shape or a planar shape.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the lateral thermal profile includes a first zone, a second zone and a third zone, wherein the first and third zones have temperatures above and below a melting point of the material, respectively, and the second zone has, a plurality of temperatures with at least one temperature equal to the melting point of the material and containing a solid-liquid interface of the material, wherein the thermal gradient causes a point in the bottom of the crucible located in the third zone to be the coldest point in the crucible.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein the heat transfer comprises transfer of heat from the first and second zones to the third zone to produce the leading edge to create substantially a single nucleation center in the leading edge for growing the crystal.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the heat transfer device comprises one of a heat guide or a radiation guide.

8. The system of claim 1 , wherein the furnace further comprises one or more sets of heating elements wherein the sets of heating elements comprise upper and lower heating elements and the upper heating elements are hotter than the lower heating elements.

9. The system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one elongate member comprises a material that has a thermal conductivity that is higher than the thermal conductivity of quartz.

10. The system of claim 1 , wherein at least one end of the at least one elongate member does not extend past the crucible.

11. The system of claim 1 , wherein the at least one elongate member comprises plural elongate members interposed between the crucible and the ampoule.

Assignees

• Gen Electric

Inventors

• Shahar Arie
• Traub Eliezer
• Rusian Peter
• Rojo Juan Carlos

Classifications

• C30B29/48

  AIIBVI compounds {wherein A is Zn, Cd or Hg, and B is S, Se or Te} · CPC title

• C30B11/003 Primary

  Heating or cooling of the melt or the crystallised material · CPC title

• Y10T117/1092

  Shape defined by a solid member other than seed or product [e.g., Bridgman-Stockbarger] · CPC title