Kinetic and Microstructure of SiC Deposited from SiCl4-CH4-H2

Silicon carbide was prepared from SiCl4-CH4-H2 gaseous precursors by isothermal, isobaric chemical vapor deposition (CVD) at atmospheric pressure and temperatures ranging from 900°C to 1100°C. Kinetic studies showed that carbosilane of SiH2Cl2, SiHCl3 and SiCl2 formed from decomposition of SiCl4 and CH4 contributed to the deposition of hexangular facet and granular pebble structured SiC. An average apparent activation energy of 152 kJ·mol−1 was determined. The overall CVD process was controlled not only by the surface reactions but also by complex gas phase reactions. The as-deposited thin film was characterized using scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy, these analysis showed that the deposited thin film consisted of pure phase of the β-SiC, the growth morphology of β-SiC differs from hexangular facet to granular pebble structures, which varied with substrate length and CVD temperature.