China SiC Epitaxial Module Manufacturers, Suppliers, Factory

Currently, silicon carbide dominates the third generation of semiconductors. In the cost structure of silicon carbide devices, substrates account for 47%, and epitaxy contributes 23%. Together, these two components represent about 70% of the overall manufacturing cost, making them crucial in the silicon carbide device production chain.

Within the silicon carbide (SiC) industry chain, substrate suppliers hold significant leverage, primarily due to value distribution. SiC substrates account for 47% of the total value, followed by epitaxial layers at 23%, while device design and manufacturing constitute the remaining 30%. This inverted value chain stems from the high technological barriers inherent to substrate and epitaxial layer production. Three major challenges plague SiC substrate growth: stringent growth conditions, slow growth rates, and demanding crystallographic requirements. These complexities contribute to increased processing difficulty, ultimately resulting in low product yields and high costs. Furthermore, the epitaxial layer’s thickness and doping concentration are critical parameters directly impacting the final device performance.

In the semiconductor industry, epitaxial layers play a crucial role by forming specific single-crystal thin films atop a wafer substrate, collectively known as epitaxial wafers. Particularly, silicon carbide (SiC) epitaxial layers grown on conductive SiC substrates produce homogenous SiC epitaxial wafers, which are instrumental in the fabrication of power devices such as Schottky diodes, MOSFETs, and IGBTs, with 4H-SiC substrates being the most widely utilized.

In the process of growing SiC and AlN single crystals by the physical vapor transport method (PVT), components such as the crucible, seed crystal holder and guide ring play a vital role. During the preparation process of SiC, the seed crystal is located in a relatively low temperature region, while the raw material is in a high temperature region exceeding 2400°C. The raw materials decompose at high temperatures to form SiXCy (including Si, SiC₂, Si₂C and other components).

Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) is a versatile thin-film deposition technique widely employed in the semiconductor industry for fabricating high-quality, conformal thin films on various substrates. This process involves chemical reactions of gaseous precursors onto a heated substrate surface, resulting in the formation of a solid thin film. This article delves into the intricacies of CVD, exploring its mechanisms, advantages, limitations, and key applications in semiconductor manufacturing.

The development of high-powered blue and UV LEDs has enabled the creation of full-color LED TV displays, as well as white LED automotive and domestic lighting. These LEDs are based on Gallium Nitride, which is deposited on substrate wafers supported by CVD SiC-coated graphite susceptor using the MOCVD process.