A numerical simulation study for the effect of magnetic fields in liquid phase diffusion growth of SiGe single crystals

Abstract

The article presents the results of a numerical simulation study conducted to examine the effect of static and rotating magnetic fields on the growth process of SiGe single crystals by liquid phase diffusion (LPD). A three-dimensional transient numerical simulation model was developed to observe the heat, mass, and momentum transfer characteristics of the SiGe solution. Simulation results indicate that the use of a static, vertical magnetic field in this growth setup is effective in suppressing natural convection in the solution. A stationary field intensity of 0.3 T is sufficient to provide significant suppression, above which the flow becomes numerically unstable. However, the vertical magnetic field does not provide the expected flattening in the growth interface. In the case of a rotating magnetic field (RMF), results show that the use of RMF is effective in providing sufficient mixing in the melt leading to more homogeneous SiGe crystals. In addition, RMF is also very beneficial for flattening the growth interface. At the 3.0 mT a RMF intensity level, the growth interface becomes almost flat.