Limited current conduction due to various types of stacking faults in n-type 4H-SiC epilayers

Abstract

Impacts of various types of stacking faults (SFs) on electron conduction in an n-type 4H-SiC epilayer were experimentally investigated. N-type Schottky barrier diodes were fabricated, containing a SF plane in the active area with a covering ratio of unity, whereupon the current–voltage characteristics were evaluated within a temperature range of 293–523 K. The forward current was significantly limited due to the SFs, the degree of which depended on the type of SF, and the current limitation was moderated by increasing the temperature. These results could be consistently explained by the well-known quantum well model.