MOCVD growth of cubic GaN on 3C-SiC deposited on Si (100) substrates

The growth of cubic GaN on 3C-SiC/Si(100) by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) under various growth temperatures, thicknesses of 3C-SiC, and V/III ratios was studied. The fractions of cubic and hexagonal phases in the films were estimated from the integrated x-ray diffraction intensities of the cubic (002) and hexagonal (1011) planes. A smooth SiC layer, a high growth temperature, and a moderate V/III ratio are three key factors for the nucleation of the cubic phase and its subsequent growth. Hexagonal GaN with its c-axis perpendicular to the substrate preferentially grows at the low temperature of 750°C. The inclusion of the cubic phase increases with increasing growth temperature. The optimum growth conditions for dominant cubic GaN formation were a growth temperature of 950°C, a 1.5 µm thick SiC layer, and a V/III ratio of 1500. With these growth conditions, a cubic GaN layer with the cubic component of 91% was obtained.