Different polytypes of SiC exhibit different properties.
Some of the key properties are listed in Table~\ref{table:sic:properties} and compared to other technologically relevant semiconductor materials.
Despite the lower charge carrier mobilities for low electric fields SiC outperforms Si concerning all other properties.
-The wide band gap, large breakdown field and high saturation drift velocity make SiC an ideal candidate for high-temperature, high-power and high-frequency electronic devices exhibiting high efficiency.
+The wide band gap, large breakdown field and high saturation drift velocity make SiC an ideal candidate for high-temperature, high-power and high-frequency electronic devices exhibiting high efficiency~\cite{wesch96,morkoc94,casady96,capano97,pensl93,park98,edgar92}.
In addition the high thermal conductivity enables the implementation of small-sized electronic devices enduring increased power densites.
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-Negligible junction leakage currents at elevated temperatures due to the high band gap allow high-temperature operations without excessive leakage.
-Even non-volatile dynamic random access memory (DRAM) at room temperature can generally be realized by SiC based electronics~\cite{}.
-Additionally the wide band gap allows SiC to be used in UV detectors.
-The high saturation electron drift velocity provides higher currents and higher cut-off frequencies for SiC based high-frequency and high-power devices, such as microwave devices.
-The high breakdown strength enables the realization of electronic switching devices enduring high power densities.
-The high thermal conductivity permits ...
+Its formidable mechanical stability, heat resistant, radiation hardness and low neutron capture cross section allow operation in harsh and radiation-hard environments~\cite{capano97}.
Despite high-temperature operations the wide band gap also allows the use of SiC in optoelectronic devices.
Indeed, a forgotten figure, Oleg V. Losev discovered what we know as the light emitting diode (LED) today in the mid 1920s by observing light emission from SiC crystal rectifier diodes used in radio receivers when a current was passed through them~\cite{losev27}.
And indeed, the first significant blue LEDs reinvented at the start of the 1990s were based on SiC.
Due to the indirect band gap and, thus, low light emitting efficiency, however, it is nowadays replaced by GaN and InGaN based diodes.
However, even for GaN based diodes SiC turns out to be of great importance since it constitutes an ideal substrate material for GaN epitaxial layer growth~\cite{liu_l02}.
+As such, SiC will continue to play a major role in the production of future super-bright visible emitters.
Especially substrates of the 3C polytype promise good quality, single crystalline GaN films~\cite{takeuchi91,yamamoto04,ito04}.
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-Focus on ... key ... to high efficiency
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-inverters and rectifieres based on SiC schottky
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-high saturation drift velocity high-frequency ...
-Mechanical stability almost like diamond ...
-Chemical inert, low neutron capture foobar ... radiation hardness
+The focus of SiC based applications, however, is in the area of solid state electronics experiencing revolutionary performance improvements enabled by its capabilities.
+These devices include ultraviolet (UV) detectors, high power radio frequency (RF) amplifiers, rectifiers and switching transistors as well as MEMS applications.
+For UV dtectors the wide band gap is useful for realizing low photodiode dark currents as well as sensors that are blind to undesired near-infrared wavelenghts produced by heat and solar radiation.
+These photodiodes serve as excellent sensors applicable in the monitoring and control of turbine engine combustion.
+The low dark currents enable the use in X-ray, heavy ion and neutron detection in nuclear reactor monitoring and enhanced scientific studies of high-energy particle collisions as well as cosmic radiation.
+The low neutron capture cross section and radiation hardness favors its use in detector applications.
+The high breakdown field and carrier saturation velocity coupled with the high thermal conductivity allow SiC RF transistors to handle much higher power densities and frequencies in stable operation at high temperatures.
+Smaller transistor sizes and less cooling requirements lead to a reduced overall size and cost of these systems.
+For instance, SiC based solid state transmitters hold great promise for High Definition Television (HDTV) broadcast stations abandoning the reliance on tube-based technology for high-power transmitters significantly reducing the size of such transmitters and long-term maintenance costs.
+The high breakdown field of SiC compared to Si allows the blocking voltage region of a device to be designed roughly 10 times thinner and 10 times heavier doped, resulting in a decrease of the blocking region resistance by a factor of 100 and a much faster switching behavior.
+Thus, rectifier diodes and switching transistors with higher switching frequencies and much greater efficiencies can be realized and exploited in highly efficient power converters.
+Therefor, SiC constitutes a promising candidate to become the key technology towards an extensive development and use of regenerative energies and elctromobility.
+Beside the mentioned electrical capabilities the mechanical stability, which is almost as hard as diamond, and chemical inertness almost suggest SiC to be used in MEMS designs.
isotropic properties ...
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Since in this work 3C-SiC unit cell ... two fcc lattices ...
\section{Substoichiometric concentrations of carbon in crystalline silicon}
-\section{Assumed precipitation mechanism of cubic silicon carbide in silicon}
+\section{Assumed precipitation mechanism of cubic silicon carbide in bulk silicon}
\label{section:assumed_prec}
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