Growth Rate Enhancement of (0001)-Face Silicon–Carbide Oxidation in Thin Oxide Regime

The thermal oxidation of silicon carbide (SiC) has been studied by performing in-situ ellipsometry. We have found that the oxidation rates at the oxidation thickness of approximately less than around 20 nm are much larger than those given using the Deal–Grove (D–G) model, suggesting that the oxidation time dependence of the oxide thickness cannot be explained using the D–G model, i.e., a simple linear-parabolic model, in the initial oxidation stage. By using the empirical relation, which has been proposed for Si oxidation, i.e., adding an exponential term to the D–G equation, the origin of the growth rate enhancement in SiC oxidation has been discussed.