High-purity, isotopically enriched bulk silicon

Abstract

The synthesis and characterization of dislocation-free, undoped, single crystals of Si enriched in all 3 stable isotopes is reported: {sup 28}Si (99.92%), {sup 29}Si (91.37%), and {sup 30}Si (89.8%). A silane-based process compatible with the relatively small amounts of isotopically enriched precursors that are practically available was used. The silane is decomposed to silicon on a graphite starter rod heated to 700-750 C in a recirculating flow reactor. A typical run produces 35 gm of polycrystalline Si at a growth rates of 5 {micro}m/min and conversion efficiency >95%. Single crystals are grown by the floating zone method and characterized by electrical and optical measurements. Concentrations of shallow dopants (P and B) are as low as mid-10{sup 13} cm{sup -3}. Concentrations of C and O lie below 10{sup 16} and 10{sup 15} cm{sup -3}, respectively

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