Growth of Nd:Sr3Ga2Ge4O14 crystals by a modified Bridgman method

Bridgman growth of Nd:SGG (Sr₃Ga₂Ge₄O₁₄) crystals has been investigated for the first time. Pt crucible of ∅︁25mm×250mm with a seed well of ∅︁10mm×80 mm is used, and seed is SGG crystal of ∅︁10mm×50mm grown by Bridgman method in advance. The growth parameters are optimized as the furnace temperature is set to 1450∼1500°C, temperature gradient in the crystal‐melt interface is less than 25 K/cm and growth rate is less than 0.5mm/h. The Nd:SGG crystals with 25mm in diameter and 60mm in length are grown successfully from 1.5 to 8at% Nd³⁺ doped stoichiometric Sr₃Ga₂Ge₄O₁₄ melt. The distribution coefficient and concentration of Nd³⁺ in Nd:SGG crystals are obviously higher than those of Nd:YAG crystal. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

3D simulation of the effects of growth parameters on the growth of sapphire crystals using heat exchanger method

3D simulations using the commercial CFDRC and FIDAP code, which are based on finite element techniques, were performed to investigate the effects of anisotropic conductivity on the convexity of the melt–crystal interface and the hot spots of sapphire crystal in a heat‐exchanger‐method crystal growth system. The convection boundary conditions of both the energy input to the crucible by the radiation as well as convection inside the furnace and the energy output through the heat exchanger are modeled. The cross‐sectional flow pattern and the shape of the melt–crystal interface are confirmed by comparing the 3‐D modeling results with previous 2D simulation results. In the 3D model, the “hot spots” in the corners of the crucible are donut shaped, and the shape changes with the value of the conductivity of anisotropic crystal. The outline of the crystal becomes more convex as the conductivity in the z direction (k_sz) increases. The outline of melt–crystal interface is elliptical when the anisotropic conductivity is moving in the radial direction (k_sx and k_sy). The portion at the outline touching the bottom of the crucible is smaller than the maximum outline of the crystal, meaning that the shape at the “hot spot”, changes with the value of the conductivities of anisotropic crystal. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Numerical simulation of thermal and mass transport during Czochralski crystal growth of sapphire

The thermal and flow transport in an inductively heated Czochralski crystal growth furnace during a crystal growth process is investigated numerically. The temperature and flow fields inside the furnace, coupled with the heat generation in the iridium crucible induced by the electromagnetic field generated by the RF coil, are computed. The results indicate that for an RF coil fixed in position during the growth process, although the maximum value of the magnetic, temperature and velocity fields decrease, the convexity of the crystal‐melt interface increases for longer crystal growth lengths. The convexity of the crystal‐melt interface and the power consumption can be reduced by adjusting the relative position between the crucible and the induction coil during growth. (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Optimization of control parameters of cadmium zinc telluride Bridgman single crystal growth

The temperature gradient within a furnace chamber and the crucible pull rate are the key control parameters for cadmium zinc telluride Bridgman single crystal growth. Their effects on the heat and mass transfer in front of the solid‐liquid interface and the solute segregation in the grown crystal were investigated with numerical modeling. With an increase of the temperature gradient, the convection intensity in the melt in front of the solid‐liquid interface increases almost proportionally to the temperature gradient. The interface concavity decreases rapidly at faster crucible pull rates, while it increases at slow pull rates. Moreover, the solute concentration gradient in the melt in front of the solid‐liquid interface decreases significantly, as does the radial solute segregation in the grown crystal. In general, a decrease of the pull rate leads to a strong decrease of the concavity of the solid‐liquid interface and of the radial solute segregation in the grown crystal, while the axial solute segregation in the grown crystal increases slightly. A combination of a low crucible pull rate with a medium temperature gradient within the furnace chamber will make the radial solute segregation of the grown crystal vanish. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Numerical investigation of heat transport and fluid flow during the seeding process of oxide Czochralski crystal growth Part 1: non‐rotating seed

For the seeding process of oxide Czochralski crystal growth, the flow and temperature field of the system as well as the seed‐melt interface shape have been studied numerically using the finite element method. The configuration usually used initially in a real Czochralski crystal growth process consists of a crucible, active afterheater, induction coil with two parts, insulation, melt, gas and non‐rotating seed crystal. At first the volumetric distribution of heat inside the metal crucible and afterheater inducted by the RF coil was calculated. Using this heat source the fluid flow and temperature field were determined in the whole system. We have considered two cases with respect to the seed position: (1) before and (2) after seed touch with the melt. It was observed that in the case of no seed rotation (ω_seed = 0), the flow pattern in the bulk melt consists of a single circulation of a slow moving fluid. In the gas domain, there are different types of flow motion related to different positions of the seed crystal. In the case of touched seed, the seed‐melt interface has a deep conic shape towards the melt. It was shown that an active afterheater and its location with respect to the crucible, influences markedly the temperature and flow field of the gas phase in the system and partly in the melt. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Evaporation induced diameter control in fiber crystal growth by micro‐pulling‐down technique: Bi4Ge3O12

Diameter self‐control was established in Bi₄Ge₃O₁₂ fiber crystal growth by micro‐pulling‐down technique. In accordance with Bi₂O₃‐GeO₂ phase diagram, the diameter was controlled due to compensation of solidification with evaporation of volatile Bi₂O₃ self‐flux charged into the crucible with excess. The crucibles had capillary channels of 310 or 650 μm in outer diameter. The crystals up to 400 mm long and 50‐300 μm in diameter were grown at pulling‐down rates of 0.04‐1.00 mm/min. The melt composition and the pulling rate were generally only two parameters determining solidification rate. As a result, crystals with uniform (± 10%) diameter and aspect ratio up to 10⁴ were produced without automation of the process. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Three dimensional numerical study of the effect of large Grashof number on HEM crystal growth

Heat transfer and fluid flow in HEM crystal growth of silicon in cylindrical cavity is studied numerically. The walls of the crucible are heated to a fixed temperature. The exchanger that causes and induces natural convection is seated at the middle‐bottom of the crucible. The finite‐volume method is employed to solve the governing equations with proper boundary conditions. The effects of transport mechanism on the temperature distribution, melt flow, pressure and stream function are presented. We focus our work on the pressure field which has not yet been studied in HEM crucible. Also, we extend our work on a wide range Grashof number and for large numbers until 10¹² not yet studied in HEM furnace. It is found that the onset of flow fluctuations appears at Gr = 10¹⁰. Uniform temperature is observed in the entire melt at high Grashof number with development of a thermal boundary layer close to the exchanger. The thermal boundary layer thickness is calculated for strong buoyancy regime. Besides, for very high Gr number, buoyancy has less effect on temperature and then on melt‐crystal interface shape. During enlarging Gr, pressure evolution is related to temperature variation more than flow pattern.     

Growth behaviour of bulk GaN single crystals grown with various flux ratios using solvent‐thermal method

Bulk GaN single crystals were grown using a solvent‐thermal method. They were grown for 200 h at 600 °C and 800 °C using 8 MPa of N₂ gas and 1–3 mm sized pyramid GaN single crystals. Pure Na, NaN₃ and Ca were used as the flux. The mole fraction of the [flux]/([flux] + [Ga]) was 0.30–0.67. The growth behavior differed according to the flux ratio. The quality of the bulk GaN single crystals was improved by increasing the flux ratio. The bulk GaN single crystals formed by spontaneous nucleation were deposited on the BN crucible wall and bottom during the first step of synthesis. The wurtzite structure of the GaN grown single crystal was confirmed by x‐ray diffration. The chemical composition was analyzed by electron probe microanalysis. The quality and optical properties of the GaN single crystal were examined by Raman spectroscopy and photoluminesence analysis. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Study on rapid growth of KH2PO4 and its characterization

Large size crystals of KH₂PO₄ (KDP) were grown by adopting rapid growth technique from point seeds in a 1500‐liter crystallizer which is used to grow KDP crystals by conventional method. The grown KDP crystal size can reach to 310 × 310 × 320 mm³ and the average growth rate was 8mm/day. The optic properties of the rapidly grown KDP crystals were characterized comparing with the KDP crystals grown by the traditional temperature reduction method. We found it that the optical quality of the KDP crystals we grown rapidly are not significantly different from those of KDP crystals grown by traditional method. (© 2005 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Influence of the crucible bottom shape on the heat transport and fluid flow during the seeding process of oxide Czochralski crystal growth

For the seeding process of oxide Czochralski crystal growth, influence of the crucible bottom shape on the heat generation, temperature and flow field of the system and the seed‐melt interface shape have been studied numerically using the finite element method. The configuration usually used in a real Czochralski crystal growth process consists of a crucible, active afterheater, induction coil with two parts, insulation, melt, gas and seed crystal. At first, the volumetric distribution of heat inside the metal crucible and afterheater inducted by the RF‐coil was calculated. Using this heat generation in the crucible wall as a source the fluid flow and temperature field of the entire system as well as the seed‐melt interface shape were determined. We have considered two cases, flat and rounded crucible bottom shape. It was observed that using a crucible with a rounded bottom has several advantages such as: (i) The position of the heat generation maximum at the crucible side wall moves upwards, compared to the flat bottom shape. (ii) The location of the temperature maximum at the crucible side wall rises and as a result the temperature gradient along the melt surface increases. (iii) The streamlines of the melt flow are parallel to the crucible bottom and have a curved shape which is similar to the rounded bottom shape. These important features lead to increasing thermal convection in the system and influence the velocity field in the melt and gas domain which help preventing some serious growth problems such as spiral growth. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Influence of the atmosphere on the growth of LiYF4 single crystal fibers by the micro‐pulling‐down method

Micro‐pulling‐down growth of LiYF₄ single crystal fibers have been performed under different gas atmospheres using stoichiometric LiYF₄ single crystal pieces from prior Czochralski experiments as starting material. Completely transparent and phase pure LiYF₄ single crystal fibers could be obtained after evacuation of the recipient to 2×10^‐6 mbar and subsequent filling with pure (99.995%) CF₄ gas. Using a gas mixture of 5% CF₄ in Argon or pure 5N Argon leads to the formation of micro crystallites of oxofluorides on the surface. Evacuating only to 3 × 10^‐3 mbar leads, independently of atmosphere, to completely white fibers that are heavily contaminated with oxofluorides. DSC measurements of the completely transparent fiber grown under pure CF₄ atmosphere reveal congruent melting behavior. (© 2009 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Three‐dimensional numerical investigation of the effects of an open window on the convective heat transfer of an oxide Czochralski system

A three‐dimensional numerical analysis was carried out for a real Czochralski crystal growth furnace containing only gas and without any melt and crystal in order to investigate the effects of a small observation window on the temperature and flow field of the system. For this approach, the induction heating equations, the Navier‐Stokes equation with Boussinesq approximation, the continuity and energy equations have been solved in cylindrical coordinates using the finite element method. It has been found that the flow and thermal fields in the system are obviously three‐dimensional and non‐axisymmetric. The gas enters the system through the window is directed towards the opposite side wall where it is divided into two parts of vertical direction as well as expands in horizontal direction. Consequently, there is a spiral gas flow in the crucible and afterheater which rotates upwards in azimuthal direction along the walls. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Optimization of thermal environment during crystal growth of large‐sized Nd:YAG by Temperature Gradient Technique

A finite‐element model is employed to analysis the thermal environments in Temperature Gradient Technique (TGT) furnace during the growth of large‐sized Nd:YAG crystal. The obtained results show that when the crucible is located at the lower position inside of the heater, a flatter solid‐liquid interface is established, which makes it easier to obtain the core‐free Nd:YAG crystal. Meanwhile, the lower crucible position can induce higher axial temperature gradient, which is beneficial to the release of latent heat. (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Synthesis of stoichiometric LiNbO3 nanopowder through a wet chemical method

Stoichiometric lithium niobate powder which are used as feeding material in near stoichometric LiNbO₃ crystal growth have been successfully prepared from commercial niobium hydroxide [Nb(OH)₅] and nontoxic DL‐malic acid by a wet chemical method. The synthesis temperature was pre‐determined by the results from thermogravimetric and differential thermal analysis. The structure and morphology of the as‐prepared samples were observed by using the infrared spectroscopy and the scanning electron microscopy. The X‐ray diffraction experiment showed that lithium niobate powder had an ilmenite structure, and its unit cell parameters were calculated to be a = b = 0.5140 nm, c = 1.3738 nm, and V = 0.3144 nm³. The melting point of the synthesized powder is 1239 °C and Curie temperature T_c is 1122 °C. This synthesis method would be helpful to grow the near‐stoichiometric LiNbO₃ crystal with double crucible techniques. (© 2009 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Crystallization of vitamin C in a continuous DT MSMPR crystallizer – Size independent growth kinetic model approach

The experimental results concerning continuous mass crystallization process in L(+)‐ascorbic acid – water system are presented and discussed. Influence of L(+)‐ascorbic acid concentration in a feeding solution and mean residence time of suspension in laboratory DT MSMPR crystallizer on product crystal size distribution as well as nucleation and growth kinetics were determined. Kinetic parameter values were evaluated on the basis of size–independent growth (SIG) kinetic model (McCabe's ΔL law). It was observed, that within the examined range of crystallizer productivity (120–1600 kg LAA crystals m^–3h^–1) crystal product population of mean size L_m from 0.2 to 0.3 mm and CV from 66.6 to 49% is withdrawn. Linear growth rate values present decreasing trend (from ca. 7 · 10^–8 to ca. 6 · 10^–8 m s^–1) with the productivity increase (assuming constant mean residence time of suspension τ = 900 s). Occurrence of secondary nucleation within the circulated and mixed suspension, resulting from crystal attrition and breakage, was observed. The parameter values in design equation connecting linear growth rate and suspension density with nucleation rate were determined. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Flux Bridgman growth and the influence of annealing temperatures on PL properties of ZnO single crystals

Transparent ZnO crystals were obtained by the flux Bridgman method from high temperature solution of 22 mol% ZnO‐78 mol% PbF₂ system. The influence of annealing temperatures on the photoluminescence (PL) of ZnO crystal was investigated. An ultraviolet emission peak at about 379 nm was observed in PL spectra and the peak position has a weak blueshift for annealed samples. A green band centered at 523 nm appeared in the annealed samples and its intensity enhanced with the increase of annealing temperatures, while the intensity of the ultraviolet peak decreased considerably. However, the ultraviolet emission peak became the strongest after annealing at 1000 °C. This phenomenon was considered to be associated with oxygen vacancy and F^‐ impurities induced by the PbF₂ flux. The results show that high temperature annealing in air seems helpful for improving the PL properties of ZnO crystal. (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Effect of the seed crystallographic orientation on AlN bulk crystal growth by PVT method

The growth of AlN crystals by PVT method was investigated using TaC crucible in the temperature range of 2250‐2350 °C. AlN boules with 30 mm in diameter were successfully grown on the crucible lid by self‐seeded growth. The AlN boules consist of the spontaneously nucleated AlN single crystal grains with the {1010} natural crystalline face. The fast growth rate of more than 1 mm/h was achieved. AlN crystals grown on (11 0)‐, (10 0)‐, and (0001)‐face AlN seeds were investigated. Different experimental phenomena have been observed under particular condition. The crystal grown on (11 0)‐face seed has different natural crystalline face from the seed. For the crystal grown on (10 0) or (0001) seed, the crystal natural crystalline face is same as the crystallographic orientation of the seed. (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

An effective growth method to improve the homogeneity of relaxor ferroelectric single crystal Pb(In1/2Nb1/2)O3‐ Pb(Mg1/3Nb2/3)O3‐PbTiO3

Compositional segregation usually has negative effects on the growth of solid solution ferroelectric single crystals of Pb(In_1/2Nb_1/2)O₃‐Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃‐PbTiO₃ (abbr. PIN‐PMN‐PT or PIMNT). A modified Bridgman method was adopted in this work to control the segregation and improve the compositional homogeneity significantly. The characteristic of this work is to use multiround growths and gradient composition raw materials in order to keep the PbTiO₃ concentration constant during the crystal growth. As an example, the two‐round growth of ternary PIN‐PMN‐PT single crystal is conducted in the same Pt crucible with gradient raw materials, where the first‐round boule was used as the seed crystal for the second‐round growth. Our results show that the as‐grown (Ф80 mm × 270 mm) PIN‐PMN‐PT crystals exhibit higher phase transition temperatures (T_c∼180 °C, T_r/t∼110 °C) and larger coercive field (E_c∼5–5.5 kV/cm), which are much better than the performances of Pb(Mg_1/3Nb_2/3)O₃‐PbTiO₃ crystals, and similar dielectric and piezoelectric performances (ε∼5000, tanδ∼1.25%, d₃₃∼1500 pC/N, k_t∼60%). And about 85 percent of the crystal boule grown by the two‐round growth technique could maintain its compositions around the morphotropic phase boundary.     

Temperature gradient controlled growth and optical properties of Er:BaY2F8 crystals

Single crystals of Erbium (Er) doped BaY₂F₈ have been obtained by the temperature gradient technique (TGT). No‐seed‐grown crystal of Er:BaY₂F₈, with the dimensions up to several centimeters, was obtained by self‐crystallization. The optimizations of various growth parameters were systemically investigated. The results indicated that the temperature gradient of 6‐7 K/mm and the cooling velocity less than 6 K/h were suitable for the crystal growth. The XRD data and the investigations on the growth striations by a stereo polarization microscope displayed that the [001] direction is the dominating direction for the crystal growth. The crystal grown by TGT often cracks along with the (100) plane, which is caused by the excessive decrease of the temperature during the crystal growth, for there is a rapid change in the thermal expansion curve of the BaY₂F₈ crystal in the temperature range from 800 °C to 900 °C. The spectral properties of Er:BaY₂F₈ single crystals have been studied and the effects of frequency up‐conversion of the crystals are reported. Spectral data suggest that the quality of Er:BaY₂F₈ crystal obtained by TGT method is good and the crystal has the potential application in laser devices. (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)     

Growth and spectroscopic investigation of Yb/Nd co‐doped KLu(WO4)2 laser crystals

Single crystals of Yb, Nd: KLu(WO₄)₂ (Yb, Nd: KLW) of dimensions up to 40mm× 40mm×5mm have been grown by top‐seeded solution growth (TSSG) method. X‐ray powder diffraction pattern was measured and compared with that of Nd: KLuW and Yb: KLuW. Absorption and fluorescence spectra were measured at room temperature. The Judd‐Ofelt theory was applied to analyze the spectrum of Nd, Yb: KLuW crystal. The intensity parameters Ω_t (t=2, 4 and 6) were calculated as Ω₂=20.68×10^‐20cm², Ω₄=11.04×10^‐20cm², Ω₆=6.74×10^‐20cm² respectively, with a root mean square deviation of 0.58×10^‐20 cm². (© 2007 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)