Separation of stress-free AlN/SiC thin films from Si substrate

Abstract

We separated AlN/SiC film from Si substrate by chemical etching of the AlN/SiC/Si heterostructure. The film fully repeats the size and geometry of the original sample and separated without destroying. It is demonstrated that a buffer layer of silicon carbide grown by a method of substitution of atoms may have an extensive hollow subsurface structure, which makes it easier to overcome the differences in the coefficients of thermal expansion during the growth of thin films. It is shown that after the separation of the film from the silicon substrate, mechanical stresses therein are almost absent.