MODELING OF THE SIC CHEMICAL VAPOR-DEPOSITION PROCESS AND COMPARISON WITH EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS

A model of the NASA Lewis SiC-chemical vapor deposition (CVD) process is described and the results presented. A key feature of the model is the direct coupling of gas phase chemical kinetics with diffusion. A deposition chemistry model using reactive sticking coefficients for each gas phase species provides the diffusion boundary conditions. Chemical characteristics of the SiC CVD process are discussed and a comparison between predicted and experimentally observed deposition rates is made. SiC deposition rates predicted by the model agree reasonably well with the observed rates. Qualitative agreement for deposition rate dependence on velocity is obtained, although lack of agreement on details of the behavior indicate that improvements in the fluid dynamic model are needed. © 1990, American Vacuum Society. All rights reserved.