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.

The silicon carbide CVD reactor cleaning process was studied by means of detaching silicon carbide particles, which was formed on the silicon carbide coated carbon susceptor surface during the silicon carbide film deposition. The contact points between the particles and the susceptor surface were etched using chlorine trifluoride gas at temperatures lower than 290 °C for 120 min. During this process, the carbon susceptor covered with the silicon carbide coating film suffered from little damage while achieving cleaning.

The C-face (0001) 4H-SiC surface morphology produced by etching using chlorine trifluoride gas was studied, focusing on the influence of the off-orientation. The etching pit at the 4° off-oriented surface was formed at a temperature higher than 973 K, which was higher than 623 K for the on-axis surface. At 1073 K, the hexagonal-shaped etching pits were observed after the etching at the chlorine trifluoride gas concentration of less than 3%. In the temperature range lower than 900 K, the mirror surface could be maintained after the etching. Thus, the mirror surface and the pitted surface are expected to be formed on the 4° off-oriented surface by means of appropriately adjusting the parameters, such as the temperature and the chlorine trifluoride gas concentration.

The C-face (0001) 4H-SiC surface morphology produced by etching using chlorine trifluoride gas was studied, focusing on the influence of the off-orientation. The etching pit at the 4o off-oriented surface was formed at a temperature higher than 973 K, which was higher than 623 K for the on-axis surface. At 1073 K, the hexagonal-shaped etching pits were observed after the etching at the chlorine trifluoride gas concentration of less than 3 %. In the temperature range lower than 900 K, the mirror surface could be maintained after the etching. Thus, the mirror surface and the pitted surface are expected to be formed on the 4o off-oriented surface by means of appropriately adjusting the parameters, such as the temperature and the chlorine trifluoride gas concentration.