Silicon Carbide Wafer
Purpose：Observe the cross-sectional
microstructure of silicon carbide (SiC) wafers. Compared to first-generation silicon-based
semiconductors, SiC exhibits superior electrical properties such as high
voltage resistance, high temperature resistance, wide bandgap, and high thermal
conductivity, making it a core material for third-generation semiconductors. It
is widely used in new energy vehicle power devices, photovoltaics, and rail
transportation. However, the high hardness and brittleness of SiC pose
challenges in metallographic sample preparation. Samples undergo cold mounting
(TJ2226 cold-curing resin), grinding/polishing (Alpha610), and a 5-step
grinding/polishing process.
Basic
Guide：
Mounting：Use
high-edge-retention cold-curing resin (e.g., TJ2226).
Grinding：1.Begin
grinding with a P400 DiaRe resin-bonded diamond grinding disc until the target
observation area is reached.
2.Continue
grinding with a POS disc + 9 µm diamond polishing suspension.
3.Clean
the sample, sample holder, and hands after each grinding step.
Polishing：1.Clean
the polishing cloth, sample holder, and hands before polishing. Repeat cleaning
after each step.
2.Do
not mix polishing disks with different
abrasive particle sizes.
3.Rinse
the sample surface with alcohol and dry with a blower to remove water residue.
4.After
each polishing step, inspect under a metallographic microscope to ensure
scratch size matches the abrasive grit and direction is random.
5.Clean
polishing cloths with running water and a soft brush after use, then air-dry.
6.Dedicate
polishing cloths used for SiC wafers exclusively to such samples.
