Low-temperature growth of SiC thin films on Si and 6H–SiC by solid-source molecular beam epitaxy

Epitaxial growth of stoichiometric SiC on Si(111) and 2°–5° off-oriented 6H–SiC(0001) substrates was carried out at low temperatures (800–1000 °C) by means of solid-source molecular beam epitaxy controlled by a quadrupole mass spectrometry based flux meter. The films were obtained on Si-stabilized surfaces showing (3×3) and (2×2) superstructures in the case of SiC(0001). The reflection high-energy diffraction (RHEED) patterns and damped RHEED-oscillations during the growth on 6H–SiC(0001) at T≳900 °C indicate that two-dimensional nucleation on terraces is the dominant growth process.