MIIIN based materials and methods and apparatus for producing same

A method for producing a single-crystal MIIIN article comprising the steps of:

• (a) providing a template material having an epitaxial-initiating growth surface;
• (b) using a sputtering apparatus comprising a non-thermionic electron/plasma injector assembly to produce a Group III metal source vapor from a Group III metal target;
• (c) combining the Group III metal source vapor with a nitrogen-containing gas to produce a reactant vapor species comprising Group III metal and nitrogen;
• and
• (d) depositing the reactant vapor species on the growth surface to produce a single-crystal MIIIN layer thereon having a thickness of greater than approximately 10 microns.

A method for producing a bulk single-crystal MIIIN article comprising the steps of:

• (a) providing a template material having an epitaxial-initiating growth surface;
• (b) sputtering a Group III metal target in a plasma-enhanced environment to produce a Group III metal source vapor;
• (c) combining the Group III metal source vapor with a nitrogen-containing gas to produce a reactant vapor species comprising Group III metal and nitrogen;
• (d) depositing the reactant vapor species on the growth surface to produce a single-crystal MIIIN layer thereon;
• and
• (e) using the single-crystal MIIIN layer as a seed crystal to grow a bulk MIIIN layer having a thickness of greater than approximately 10 microns by depositing additional reactant vapor species comprising a Group III metal and nitrogen on the seed crystal.