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Schottky barrier formation in liquid-phase-sintered silicon carbide

  • Hans-Joachim Kleebe EMAIL logo and Frank Siegelin
Published/Copyright: January 11, 2022
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International Journal of Materials Research
From the journal International Journal of Materials Research Volume 94 Issue 3

Abstract

Liquid-phase-sintered SiC materials, all doped with 3 vol.% YAG (Y3Al5O12) and sintered under identical conditions but processed in different furnaces (laboratory vs. industrial furnaces), revealed a variation in electrical resistivity of five orders of magnitude (102 vs.107 Ωcm). It was expected that, due to different cooling rates, different interface structures had evolved that strongly affected electrical resistivity, i. e., changes in intergranular film chemistry and corresponding thickness. In order to verify this hypothesis, the materials were characterized employing various techniques. High-resolution transmission electron microscopy of SiC interfaces revealed an unexpected result: clean interfaces for all samples. Elemental analysis confirmed yttrium and aluminum segregation at grain boundaries. Electron holography and Fresnel-fringe imaging revealed a change in mean inner potential across SiC interfaces. It is concluded that the segregation of acceptor ions at interfaces lowers the grain-boundary Fermi energy, resulting in the formation of potential barriers (Schottky barriers) along SiC interfaces, which in turn strongly affect electrical resistivity of SiC polycrystals.

Keywords: Silicon carbide; Electron microscopy; Interfaces; Electrical resistivity; Schottky barrier
Dr. H.-J. Kleebe Colorado School of Mines, Metall. & Mater. Eng. Dept. Golden, CO 80401, USA Tel.: +1 303 273 3952 Fax: +1 303 273 3057
Dedicated to Prof. Dr. Dr. h. c. Manfred Rühle on the occasion of his 65th birthday

Funding statement: We are greatly indebted to Prof. G. Ziegler, University of Bayreuth for his continuous support throughout this work. Moreover, we would like to express our sincere thanks to Drs. S. L. Sigl and K. A. Schwetz, Wacker Ceramics, Kempten, Germany, for providing these interesting materials and for their financial support for F. S. Dr. M. Lehmann and Prof. H. Lichte, Technical University Dresden, Germany, are gratefully acknowledged for their strong support during the electron holography experiments.

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Received: 2002-09-09
Published Online: 2022-01-11

© 2003 Carl Hanser Verlag, München

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Editorial
  3. Editorial
  4. Articles/Aufsätze
  5. The role of oxidation-induced cavities on the failure of the thermally grown oxide on binary β-NiAl alloys
  6. Phase stability of Y + Gd co-doped zirconia
  7. Mechanisms governing the distortion of alumina-forming alloys upon cyclic oxidation
  8. High-temperature oxidation of FeCrAl alloys: the effect of Mg incorporation into the alumina scale
  9. Nonlinear dielectric properties at oxide grain boundaries
  10. TEM observations of singular grain boundaries and their roughening transition in TiO2-excess BaTiO3
  11. Processing of dense MgO substrates for high-temperature superconductors
  12. Microwave-induced crystallization of polysilazane-derived silicon carbonitride
  13. Schottky barrier formation in liquid-phase-sintered silicon carbide
  14. SrTiO3: a model electroceramic
  15. Optical properties and electronic structure of oxidized and reduced single-crystal strontium titanate
  16. Spreading of liquid Ag and Ag–Mo alloys on molybdenum substrates
  17. Nanoalloying in mixed AgmAun nanowires
  18. Never ending saga of a simple boundary
  19. Comparison of interfacial chemistry at Cu/α-alumina and Cu/γ-alumina interfaces
  20. Microstructure of Cu2O/Si interfaces, made by epitaxial electrodeposition
  21. Metal/oxide interfaces and their reaction with hydrogen
  22. Amorphous films at metal/ceramic interfaces
  23. Some thoughts on source monochromation and the implications for electron energy loss spectroscopy
  24. Determination of the contrast transfer function by analysing diffractograms of thin amorphous foils
  25. Progress in the preparation of cross-sectional TEM specimens by ion-beam thinning
  26. Quantification of interfacial segregation by analytical electron microscopy
  27. Quantification of elemental segregation to lath and grain boundaries in low-alloy steel by STEM X-ray mapping combined with the ζ-factor method
  28. Microstructure of Al/Ti metallization layers
  29. Connectivity of CSL grain boundaries and the role of deviations from exact coincidence
  30. Effect of laser shock processing on the microstructure and mechanical properties of pure Cu
  31. Growth and microstructure of iron nitride layers and pore formation in ε-Fe3N
  32. Phase diagram of the Al–Cu–Fe quasicrystal-forming alloy system
  33. Notifications/Mitteilungen
  34. Personal/Personelles
  35. Gesellschaftsnachricht
  36. International Conferences
https://doi.org/10.3139/ijmr-2003-0042
Keywords for this article
Silicon carbide; Electron microscopy; Interfaces; Electrical resistivity; Schottky barrier

Articles in the same Issue

  1. Frontmatter
  2. Editorial
  3. Editorial
  4. Articles/Aufsätze
  5. The role of oxidation-induced cavities on the failure of the thermally grown oxide on binary β-NiAl alloys
  6. Phase stability of Y + Gd co-doped zirconia
  7. Mechanisms governing the distortion of alumina-forming alloys upon cyclic oxidation
  8. High-temperature oxidation of FeCrAl alloys: the effect of Mg incorporation into the alumina scale
  9. Nonlinear dielectric properties at oxide grain boundaries
  10. TEM observations of singular grain boundaries and their roughening transition in TiO2-excess BaTiO3
  11. Processing of dense MgO substrates for high-temperature superconductors
  12. Microwave-induced crystallization of polysilazane-derived silicon carbonitride
  13. Schottky barrier formation in liquid-phase-sintered silicon carbide
  14. SrTiO3: a model electroceramic
  15. Optical properties and electronic structure of oxidized and reduced single-crystal strontium titanate
  16. Spreading of liquid Ag and Ag–Mo alloys on molybdenum substrates
  17. Nanoalloying in mixed AgmAun nanowires
  18. Never ending saga of a simple boundary
  19. Comparison of interfacial chemistry at Cu/α-alumina and Cu/γ-alumina interfaces
  20. Microstructure of Cu2O/Si interfaces, made by epitaxial electrodeposition
  21. Metal/oxide interfaces and their reaction with hydrogen
  22. Amorphous films at metal/ceramic interfaces
  23. Some thoughts on source monochromation and the implications for electron energy loss spectroscopy
  24. Determination of the contrast transfer function by analysing diffractograms of thin amorphous foils
  25. Progress in the preparation of cross-sectional TEM specimens by ion-beam thinning
  26. Quantification of interfacial segregation by analytical electron microscopy
  27. Quantification of elemental segregation to lath and grain boundaries in low-alloy steel by STEM X-ray mapping combined with the ζ-factor method
  28. Microstructure of Al/Ti metallization layers
  29. Connectivity of CSL grain boundaries and the role of deviations from exact coincidence
  30. Effect of laser shock processing on the microstructure and mechanical properties of pure Cu
  31. Growth and microstructure of iron nitride layers and pore formation in ε-Fe3N
  32. Phase diagram of the Al–Cu–Fe quasicrystal-forming alloy system
  33. Notifications/Mitteilungen
  34. Personal/Personelles
  35. Gesellschaftsnachricht
  36. International Conferences
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