Process for large-scale ammonothermal manufacturing of semipolar gallium nitride boules

• US 10,604,865 B2
• Filed: 06/26/2018
• Issued: 03/31/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 06/04/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SL Technology Incorporated (Reliv' International, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: SL Technology Incorporated (Reliv' International, Inc.)
• Inventors: D'Evelyn, Mark P., Ehrentraut, Dirk, Kamber, Derrick S., Downey, Bradley C.
• Primary Examiner(s): Song, Matthew J
• Application Number:
  US16/019,528
• Publication Number:
  US 20190003078A1
• Time in Patent Office: 644 Days
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 19/02 using molten solvents, e.g. flux
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 23/04 Pattern deposit, e.g. by using masks
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 25/04 Pattern deposit, e.g. by using masks
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 29/406 Gallium nitride
• CPC Class Codes: C30B 7/105 using ammonia as solvent, i.e. ammonothermal processes

Abstract

Methods for large-scale manufacturing of semipolar gallium nitride boules are disclosed. The disclosed methods comprise suspending large-area single crystal seed plates in a rack, placing the rack in a large diameter autoclave or internally-heated high pressure apparatus along with ammonia and a mineralizer, and growing crystals ammonothermally. A bi-faceted growth morphology may be maintained to facilitate fabrication of large area semipolar wafers without growing thick boules.

Claims

1. A method of forming a boule used to form one or more single crystal substrates, comprising performing a crystal growth process on one or more seed crystals to form one or more boules, wherein

the one or more seed crystals each have a first crystallographic orientation on a first surface,

the first surface of each of the one or more seed crystals includes parallel features that are:

formed on the first surface of or within each of the one or more seed crystals;

or

formed between two or more tiled crystals that form a mosaic of tiled crystals,

a first growth facet and a second growth facet form between the parallel features as crystal growth occurs on the one or more seed crystals during the crystal growth process, wherein the first growth facet has a second crystallographic orientation and the second growth facet has a third crystallographic orientation, and exposed surfaces of the growing crystal do not include the first crystallographic orientation, and wherein

each of the second crystallographic orientation and the third crystallographic orientation are oblique with respect to the first crystallographic orientation, and

the first crystallographic orientation, the second crystallographic orientation, and the third crystallographic orientation are each different families of crystallographic orientations.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the parallel features comprise grooves on the first surface of each of the one or more seed crystals and are formed by sawing, dry etching, reactive ion etching, wet etching, laser scribing, or grinding.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the grooves have a depth between about one micrometer and about one millimeter and a width between about ten micrometers and about one millimeter.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the parallel features comprise mask lines formed on the first surface of each of the one or more seed crystals, the mask lines comprising at least one of nickel, chromium, titanium, gold, molybdenum, tungsten, tantalum, niobium, rhenium, platinum, rhodium, ruthenium, silver, SiO₂, or SiN_x.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the mask lines are deposited by at least one of thermal evaporation, electron-beam evaporation, or sputtering.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein each of the mask lines comprise at least two of an adhesion layer, a diffusion barrier layer, or an inert layer.

7. The method of claim 4, wherein the mask lines have a thickness between about 0.01 micrometer and about 100 micrometers and have a width between about 10 micrometers and about 10 millimeters.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the parallel features comprise gaps between the tiled crystals that form the mosaic of tiled crystals, a polar misorientation angle between adjacent tiled crystals being less than 0.5 degree and an azimuthal misorientation angle between adjacent tiled crystals being less than 1 degree.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the parallel features have a period that is between about 0.01 millimeter and about 10 centimeters.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the period of the parallel features is between about 1 millimeter and about 10 millimeters.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the one or more seed crystals and the boule comprise gallium nitride having a wurtzite structure and the first crystallographic orientation is angled by at least about 5 degrees from an m-plane and from a c-plane of said wurtzite structure.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein said first crystallographic orientation is within about 3 degrees of one of {6 0 −

6 ±

1}, {5 0 −

5 ±

1}, {4 0 −

4 ±

1}, {3 0 −

3 ±

1}, {5 0 −

5 ±

2}, {2 0 −

2 ±

1}, {3 0 −

3 ±

2}, {4 0 −

4 ±

3}, and {5 0 −

5 ±

4}.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein said second crystallographic orientation comprises {1 0 −

1 0} and said third crystallographic orientation comprises {1 0 −

1 ±

1}.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the crystal growth process is performed using an ammonothermal crystal growth method at a temperature above about 400 degrees Celsius.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the crystal growth process is performed using a hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) crystal growth method at a temperature above about 900 degrees.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the crystal growth process is performed using a flux method.

17. The method of claim 1, further comprising slicing the boule formed during the crystal growth process to form two or more single crystal substrates, wherein the two or more single crystal substrates have a crystallographic orientation within 3 degrees of the first crystallographic orientation.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the first and second growth facets, once formed, persist throughout the duration of the crystal growth process and no growth facets having said first crystallographic orientation appear after said first surface is overgrown.