Low-temperature growth of 3C-SiC by the gas source molecular beam epitaxial method

Single crystalline 3C-SiC films were grown on a Si substrate by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) using SiHCl3 and C2H4 gases. The optimal growth conditions were achieved at a growth temperature (Tsub ) of 1000 °C and a gas pressure ratio (PSiHCl3 /PC2H4 ) of 1/3 at PSiHCl3 =1×10−5 Torr. Prior to the essential growth of SiC, a carbonization process was performed with C2H4 gas only. A continuous observation by reflection high-energy electron diffraction (RHEED) was performed throughout the process of crystal growth. A series of RHEED patterns revealed that carbonization film could be grown at 750 °C and the lattice mismatch between Si and SiC crystals was satisfactorily relaxed. All processes of crystal growth were performed at a relatively low temperature.