Title: Numerical simulation of SiC crystal growth during physical vapour transport using the lattice Boltzmann - phase field model

Authors: Hu Zhao; Shilin Mao; Hui Xing; Dongke Sun

Addresses: School of Mechanical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China ' School of Mechanical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China ' Research & Development Institute of Northwestern Polytechnical University in Shenzhen, Shenzhen, 518000, China ' School of Mechanical Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 211189, China

Abstract: The lattice Boltzmann-phase field (LB-PF) model is utilised to investigate SiC crystal growth in physical vapour transport (PVT). In the model, the magnetic vector potential equation is used to compute the magnetic field distribution of the growth environment, the thermal stress equation based on displacement is applied to solve the stress evolution in the crystals and the LB-PF equation is applied to describe the crystal growth. After model validation, the model is applied to study the temperature evolution and crystal growth under different coil positions, currents and pressures. The results show that moving up coils and increasing currents have little effect on axial temperature gradient in growth environment, the crystal growth rates could be increased by reducing the pressure. The present model has been demonstrated its potential in simulations of SiC crystal growth.

Keywords: SiC; crystal growth; lattice Boltzmann; phase field; physical vapour transport; stress; pressure.

DOI: 10.1504/IJCMSSE.2023.135842

International Journal of Computational Materials Science and Surface Engineering, 2023 Vol.11 No.3/4, pp.253 - 271

Received: 01 May 2023
Accepted: 15 May 2023
Published online: 08 Jan 2024 *