Structural relaxation in amorphous silicon carbide

High purity single crystal and chemically vapor deposited (CVD) silicon carbide have been amorphized under fast neutron irradiation. The gradual transition in physical properties from the as-amorphized state to a more relaxed amorphous state prior to crystallization is studied. For the three bulk properties studied: density, electrical resistivity, and thermal conductivity, large property changes occur upon annealing between the amorphization temperature and the point of crystallization. These physical property changes occur in the absence of crystallization and are attributed to short and perhaps medium range ordering during annealing. It is demonstrated that the physical properties of amorphous SiC (a-SiC) can vary greatly and are likely a function of the irradiation state producing the amorphization. The initiation of crystallization as measured using bulk density and in situ TEM is found to be ∼875 °C, though the kinetics of crystallization above this point are seen to depend on the technique used. It is speculated that in situ TEM and other thin-film approaches to study crystallization of amorphous SiC are flawed due to thin-film effects.