Studies of Defect Detection and Thermal Influence in Semi-Insulating 6H-SiC Substrates Using a Long-Wavelength Infrared Thermal Imaging Camera

A long-wavelength infrared thermal imaging camera (IR camera) was applied to visually evaluate the thermal influence of defects in semi-insulating 6H-SiC substrates. Defects in substrates were rapidly and effectively detected by IR camera observation, and the dependence of the temperature on the defect size could be observed precisely. We have applied an IR camera to show clearly, for the first time, the change in heat propagation in areas of defects by observation of temperature distribution images in real time. Consequently, the IR camera can be considered as an effective technique for evaluating the thermal influence of defects.