Thermal expansion coefficient of 3C–SiC

Abstract

Theoretical results for the temperature dependence of the thermal expansion coefficient for 3C–SiC are reported using a phenomenological lattice dynamical theory in the quasiharmonic approximation. The linear thermal expansion coefficient α of 3C–SiC exhibits a variation with temperature much like that of the specific heat and, unlike other tetrahedrally coordinated materials, it does not attain a negative value at lower temperatures.