50 mm diameter Sn-doped (001) beta-Ga2O3 crystal growth using the vertical Bridgeman technique in ambient air

Available online 3 July 202050 mm-diameter Sn-doped beta-Ga2O3 crystals with growth orientation perpendicular to (001) plane were grown with the newly-developed resistance heating vertical Bridgeman furnace using platinum-rhodium alloy crucibles in ambient air. Weak low angle grain boundaries and several small grains were detected on the both-side mirror polished 50 mm-diameter (001) wafer, using high resolution refraction x-ray topography. However, no imperfections were observed over the whole wafer area when using crossed polarizer analysis. Measured values of both the full width at half maximum and the dislocation densities were widely distributed in the wafer, ranging from 10 to 50 arcsec and 100 to 2000/cm(2) respectively with no distinctive correlations among them. The Sndoped crystals with concentrations ranging from 5 x 10(17) to 5 x 10(18) atom/cm(3) could be grown by Sn-doping in a range from 0.05 to 0.1 mol%, and (001) oriented, 50 mm-diameter n-type oxide semiconductor wafers with a carrier density of 3.6 x 10(18)/cm(3), a mobility of 60 cm(2)/Vsec and a resistivity of 0.03 Omega.cm, were obtained from a 0.1 mol% Sn-doped crystal.ArticleJOURNAL OF CRYSTAL GROWTH.546:125778(2020)journal articl

2-inch diameter (100) β-Ga2O3 crystal growth by the vertical Bridgman technique in a resistance heating furnace in ambient air

Available online 20 May 2020ArticleJOURNAL OF CRYSTAL GROWTH.545:125724(2020)journal articl

Morphology and formation mechanism of metallic inclusions in VB-grown sapphire crystals

Morphologies of metallic inclusions observed in sapphire crystals grown by the vertical Bridgman (VB) technique using a tungsten (W) crucible were investigated. Square- or hexagonal-shaped inclusions 2-5 mu m in size were observed in sapphire crystals around the interface between the seed and the grown crystal. It was found that such inclusions consisted of W metal used for the crucible. The morphology of some of the inclusions reflects a rhombic dodecahedron which is based on the cubic structure of W and is surrounded by {110} faces. It is probable that inclusions form in the sapphire melt during the crystal growth process, and then sink in the melt to the growth interface due to the high density of W. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.JOURNAL OF CRYSTAL GROWTH. 401:388-391 (2014)journal articl

Vertical Bridgman growth of sapphire crystals, with thin-neck formation process

A new technique is proposed in the traditional vertical Bridgman growth of sapphire crystals, in which thin-neck formation follows the initial seeding. Low-angle grain boundaries generated at the periphery of the seeding interface were eliminated at the thin neck, and the c-axis sapphire crystals with main bodies free from low-angle grain boundaries were grown.ArticleJOURNAL OF CRYSTAL GROWTH. 401:146-149 (2014)journal articl

Growth of β-Ga2O3 single crystals using vertical Bridgman method in ambient air

A new approach to beta-Ga2O3 single crystal growth was studied, using the vertical Bridgman (VB) method in ambient air, while measuring the beta-Ga2O3 melting temperature and investigating the effects of crucible composition and shape. beta-Ga2O3 single crystals 25 mm in diameter were grown in platinum rhodium alloy crucibles in ambient air, with no adhesion of the crystals to the crucible wall. Single crystal growth without a crystal seed was realized by (100) faceted growth with a growth direction perpendicular to the (100) faceted plane. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.ArticleJOURNAL OF CRYSTAL GROWTH.447:36-41(2016)journal articl

Vertical Bridgman growth of sapphire-Seed crystal shapes and seeding characteristics

The growth of sapphire by the traditional vertical Bridgman (VB) method was studied by using various shapes of seed crystals and tungsten (W) crucibles shaped to match the seeds. Approximately 2-in. diameter, c-axis sapphire single crystals were reproducibly grown from three kinds of seed: thin, tapered and full diameter. Factors relating seed type to single-crystal growth are discussed, including the reproducibility of seeding processes, and the generation and elimination of low-angle grain boundaries (LAGBs). What was learned facilitated the subsequent growth of large-diameter, 3-, 4- and 6-in., c-axis single-crystal sapphires from full-diameter seeds.ArticleJOURNAL OF CRYSTAL GROWTH. 395:80-89 (2014)journal articl

Bilateral spondylolysis of inferior articular processes of the fourth lumbar vertebra: a case report

Lumbar spondylolysis, a well known cause of low back pain, usually affects the pars interarticularis of a lower lumbar vertebra and rarely involves the articular processes. We report a rare case of bilateral spondylolysis of inferior articular processes of L4 vertebra that caused spinal canal stenosis with a significant segmental instability at L4/5 and scoliosis. A 31-year-old male who had suffered from low back pain since he was a teenager presented with numbness of the right lower leg and scoliosis. Plain X-rays revealed bilateral spondylolysis of inferior articular processes of L4, anterolisthesis of the L4 vertebral body, and right lateral wedging of the L4/5 disc with compensatory scoliosis in the cephalad portion of the spine. MR images revealed spinal canal stenosis at the L4/5 disc level. Posterior lumbar interbody fusion of the L4/5 was performed, and his symptoms were relieved