Photoluminescence Characterization of Carrier Recombination Centers in 4H-SiC Substrates by Utilizing below Gap Excitation

Though the crystal growth technology of SiC is improving steadily, it is still crucial to reduce crystalline defects which act as carrier recombination (CR) centers and deteriorate device performance. We detected CR centers in a p-type 4H-SiC substrate by observing the intensity change of photoluminescence due to the addition of a below-gap excitation (BGE) light of 0.93[eV]. We noticed the temperature and the BGE density dependence of band edge (BE) emission in addition to donor acceptor pair (DAP) emission and discriminated the temperature effect from that of BGE. The BGE density dependence of the PL intensity quenching is different among the BE emission, B0- and C0-lines of the DAP, respectively. It gives us an important clue for understanding CR mechanisms inside the bandgap of SiC.