Basal Plane Dislocation Mitigation via Etching and Growth Interrupts

Abstract

A method of preventing basal plane dislocations (BPDs) from expanding from a SiC substrate or a highly doped buffer layer into an epitaxial device/active layer comprising the steps of providing a substrate, etching the substrate, converting BPDs to electrically benign threading edge dislocations, growing a first buffer layer on the substrate, creating a growth interrupt layer or second etch layer, growing a second buffer layer, growing a drift layer, and preventing BPDs from expanding into the drift layer. A device capable of preventing basal plane dislocations (BPDs) from expanding from a SiC substrate or a highly doped buffer layer into an epitaxial device/active layer comprising a substrate, a first buffer layer, a growth interrupt layer or etch layer, a second buffer layer and a drift layer. The drift layer carrier lifetime is not reduced. BPD expansion is prevented at current densities up to 12 kA/cm2.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.