Method for producing nitride crystal

Abstract

A method for producing a nitride crystal, comprising growing a nitride crystal on the surface of a seed crystal put in a reactor while the temperature and the pressure inside the reactor that contains, as put thereinto, a seed crystal having a hexagonal-system crystal structure, a nitrogen-containing solvent, a starting material, and a mineralizing agent containing fluorine and at least one halogen element selected from chlorine, bromine and iodine are so controlled that the solvent therein could be in a supercritical state and/or a subcritical state to thereby grow a nitride crystal on the surface of the seed crystal in the reactor.

1 . (canceled) 
     
     
         2 . A GaN single crystal, wherein the GaN single crystal comprises a fluorine and has an M-plane as a major plane thereof, and the GaN single crystal has a half-value width of 30 arcsec or less with respect to at least one of a (10-12) plane reflection and a (10-10) plane reflection as measured by X-ray diffractometry. 
     
     
         3 . The GaN single crystal according to  claim 2 , wherein the GaN single crystal has a half-value width of 30 arcsec or less with respect to the (10-10) plane reflection. 
     
     
         4 . The GaN single crystal according to  claim 2 , wherein the GaN single crystal has a half-value width of 30 arcsec or less with respect to the (10-12) plane reflection. 
     
     
         5 . The GaN single crystal according to  claim 2 , wherein the GaN single crystal has a half-value width of 30 arcsec or less with respect to the (10-12) plane reflection and the (10-10) plane reflection. 
     
     
         6 . The GaN single crystal according to  claim 2 , wherein the fluorine is present at a concentration of from 5×10 15  to 1×10 18  cm −3 . 
     
     
         7 . The GaN single crystal according to  claim 2 , wherein the crystal further comprises at least one halogen selected from the group consisting of chlorine, bromine and iodine. 
     
     
         8 . The GaN single crystal according to  claim 7 , wherein the fluorine and the at least one halogen are present at a total concentration of 10 18  cm −3  or less. 
     
     
         9 . A method of producing the GaN single crystal according to  claim 2 , comprising:
 growing a GaN crystal on a seed crystal which is a GaN single crystal having a hexagonal crystal structure in a presence of an ammonia solvent, a first mineralizing agent, and a second mineralizing agent,   wherein the ammonia solvent is in a supercritical state and/or a subcritical state, the first mineralizing agent comprises fluorine, and the second mineralizing agent comprises at least one halogen selected from the group consisting of chlorine, bromine and iodine.   
     
     
         10 . The method according to  claim 9 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal grown includes a halogen from the second mineralizing agent at a concentration lower than a concentration in case where the first mineralizing agent is not present in the growing of the GaN crystal. 
     
     
         11 . The method according to  claim 9 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal grown has a fluorine concentration of from 5×10 15  to 1×10 18  cm −3 . 
     
     
         12 . The method according to  claim 9 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal grown includes halogens from the second mineralizing agent at a total concentration of 10 18  cm −3  or less. 
     
     
         13 . The method according to  claim 9 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed in a presence of an ammonia solvent in a supercritical state and/or a subcritical state such that a temperature correlation of GaN solubility in the ammonia solvent is positive in the growing of the GaN crystal. 
     
     
         14 . A method of producing a GaN single crystal, comprising:
 growing a GaN crystal on an M-plane of a seed crystal which is a GaN single crystal having a hexagonal crystal structure in a presence of an ammonia solvent in a supercritical state and/or a subcritical state, a first mineralizing agent comprising fluorine, and a second mineralizing agent comprising at least one halogen selected from chlorine, bromine and iodine,   wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal grown has an M-plane as a major plane thereof, and that the GaN crystal grown has a half-value width of 30 arcsec or less with respect to at least one of a (10-12) plane reflection and a (10-10) plane reflection as measured by X-ray diffractometry.   
     
     
         15 . The method according to  claim 14 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal grown has a half-value width of 30 arcsec or less with respect to the (10-10) plane reflection. 
     
     
         16 . The method according to  claim 14 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal grown has a half-value width of 30 arcsec or less with respect to the (10-12) plane reflection. 
     
     
         17 . The method according to  claim 14 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal grown has a half-value width of 30 arcsec or less with respect to the (10-12) plane reflection and the (10-10) plane reflection. 
     
     
         18 . The method according to  claim 14 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal has a fluorine concentration of from 5×10 15  to 1×10 18  cm −3 . 
     
     
         19 . The method according to  claim 14 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal grown includes halogens from the second mineralizing agent at a total concentration of 10 18  cm −3  or less. 
     
     
         20 . The method according to  claim 14 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed such that the GaN crystal grown includes a halogen from the second mineralizing agent at a concentration lower than a concentration in case where the first mineralizing agent is not present in the growing of the GaN crystal. 
     
     
         21 . The method according to  claim 14 , wherein the growing of the GaN crystal is performed in a presence of an ammonia solvent in a supercritical state and/or a subcritical state such that a temperature correlation of GaN solubility in the ammonia solvent is positive in the growing of the GaN crystal.