Silicon Carbide High Temperature Integrated Electronics and Sensors

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NASA Glenn (known as NASA Lewis prior to 1999) has long been a leading driver of SiC technology, as it was one of the first U.S. Government agencies to fund and carry out SiC research work. The NASA Glenn in-house research program has contributed a number of significant discoveries to the emerging high-technology silicon carbide field. These discoveries include:

First large-area epitaxial growth of silicon carbide on silicon wafers (1982).
First kilovolt (1991) and multi-kilovolt (1993) SiC rectifier devices.
Site competition effect widely utilized for SiC dopant control (1993).
Identification of micropipes as crystal defects that limit the performance of SiC power devices (1993).
First semiconductor logic gate operation at 600 C (1996).
First SiC ohmic contacts stable for 1000 hours at 600 C in air (2000).

NASA Glenn sponsored research (through contracts to industry and grants to universities) has also resulted in a number of pioneering advancements in silicon carbide technology.

Today, the Sensors and Electronics Branch remains in a unique position to make crucial contributions to the fledgling U.S. silicon carbide industry. The continuing importance and relevance of NASA Glenn SiC research is reflected in the strong support of our research customers and collaborators. The NASA Glenn HTIES program is a key participant in The Glennan Microsystems Initiative to develop microsystems (also known as microelectromechanical systems or MEMS) for use in harsh-environments. The NASA Glenn HTIES team is also collaborating with the NASA Glenn Chemical Species Gas Sensors team towards developing hostile-environment SiC-based gas sensors.