2162-8769/2013/3(1)/N3006/4/$31.00 © The Electrochemical Society JSS FOCUS ISSUE ON SEMICONDUCTOR SURFACE CLEANING AND CONDITIONING Cleaning Process Applicable to Silicon Carbide Chemical Vapor Deposition Reactor

The reactor cleaning process applicable to the silicon carbide chemical vapor deposition was designed and developed. The large silicon carbide particles formed on the carbon susceptor surface during the silicon carbide film deposition could be removed by etching the narrow contact regions between the particles and the susceptor surface using chlorine trifluoride gas at temperatures lower than 290◦C. During this process, the carbon susceptor covered with the silicon carbide coating film did not suffer considerable damage. Thus, the reactor cleaning by detaching the silicon carbide particles while maintaining the silicon carbide coating film is possible when chlorine trifluoride gas is used at low temperatures