Bulk Crystal Growth of Semiconductors: An Overview

The development of many new electronic devices is strictly connected with the availability of materials in single-crystalline form, with low density of crystallographic defects and specific electrical, magnetic, optical, chemical, and mechanical properties. These high-quality single crystals can be used either as substrates for the epitaxial growth of complicated multilayer structures or directly for the device manufacture. In the latter case, the active region of the device is obtained via dopant diffusion into the bulk material, surface oxidation, or metallization. One example is provided by polycrystalline Si solar cells, while infrared lasers, modulators, and detectors for optical telecommunications provide examples of complex epitaxial structures on high-quality InP or GaAs substrates. The need for high-quality semiconductor single crystals has triggered the development of suitable growth processes by which the composition, the structure, as well as the physical properties of a given semiconducting material may be accurately controlled. Different bulk growth technologies have been applied in order to obtain large single crystals of semiconducting materials: melt growth, solution growth, and vapor transport. The thermodynamical properties and the desired characteristics of the semiconductor to be grown actually decide what approach is most convenient. This chapter reviews the theoretical basis of the crystal growth processes and the most important crystal growth techniques. Examples of growth techniques developed in view of specific semiconductors are also reported.

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