High-mobility 2D electron gas in carbon-face 3C-SiC/4H-SiC heterostructure with single-domain 3C-SiC layer

We epitaxially grew a single-domain 3C layer on a step-controlled C-face 4H-SiC substrate to create a 3C/4H-SiC heterostructure. The effectiveness of using such a substrate to grow a thin highly crystalline single-domain 3C layer was demonstrated. The heterostructure exhibited an electron Hall mobility of 7224 cm(2)/V s at 32 K, which is more than one order of magnitude higher than the best value reported for this structure. From a comparison with the value of 134 m(2)/V s for a structure with a multi-domain 3C layer, we attribute the high mobility to single-domain formation. The nearly constant sheet carrier density of similar to 1.5 x 10(13) cm(-2) in the temperature range from 34 to 573 K and the high mobility suggest that conduction occurred in a two-dimensional electron gas. Thus, the high potential of C-face 3C/4H heterostructures for high electron mobility transistor applications is displayed. Published under an exclusive license by AIP Publishing.

Automated summary

We grew a single-domain 3C layer on a step-controlled C-face 4H-SiC substrate to create a 3C/4H-SiC heterostructure. The use of such a substrate demonstrated the effectiveness of growing a thin highly crystalline single-domain 3C layer. The heterostructure displayed an electron Hall mobility of 7224 cm(2)/V s at 32 K, which is significantly higher than previous reports and can be attributed to single-domain formation. The constant sheet carrier density and high mobility in a wide temperature range suggest conduction in a two-dimensional electron gas, highlighting the potential of C-face 3C/4H heterostructures for high electron mobility transistor applications.