Electrically active defects in irradiated 4H-SiC

4H-SiC epilayers were irradiated with either protons or electrons and electrically active defects were studied by means of deep level transient spectroscopy. Motion of defects has been found to occur at temperature as low as 350-400 K. Indeed, the application of an electric field has been found to enhance modifications in defect concentrations that can also occur during long time annealing at elevated temperature. Two levels have been revealed and labeled B and M. Two other levels, referred to as S-1 and S-2 and located at 0.40 and 0.71 eV below the conduction band edge have been studied in detail (capture cross sections, profiling, formation energy, activation energy during annealing). The S-1 and S-2 levels have been found to exhibit a one to one relation and are proposed to be two charge states of the same acceptor center, labeled the S center. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.