Formation of carbon interstitial-related defect levels by thermal injection of carbon into $n$-type 4$H$-SiC

Abstract: Electrical properties of point defects in 4$H$-SiC have been studied extensively, but those related to carbon interstitials (C${i}$) have remained surprisingly elusive until now. Indeed, when introduced via ion irradiation or implantation, signatures related to C${i}$ observed by deep level transient spectroscopy (DLTS) tend to overlap with those of other primary defects, making the direct identification of C${i}$-related levels difficult. Recent literature has suggested to assign the so-called M center, often found in as-irradiated 4H-SiC, to charge state transitions of the C${i}$ defect in different configurations. In this work, we have introduced excess carbon into low-doped n-type 150 {\mu}m thick 4$H$-SiC epilayers by thermal annealing, with a pyrolyzed carbon cap on the sample surface acting as a carbon source. Because the layers exhibited initially low concentrations of carbon vacancies ([V${C}$] = 10$^{11}$ cm$^{-3}$), this enabled us to study the case of complete V${C}$ annihilation, and formation of defects due to excess carbon, i.e. carbon interstitials C${i}$ and their higher-order complexes. We report on the occurrence of several new levels upon C injection which are likely C${i}$-related. Their properties are different from those found for the M center, which points towards a different structural identity of the detected levels. This suggests the existence of a rich variety of C${i}$-related defects. The study will also help generating new insights into the microscopic process of V${C}$ annihilation during carbon injection processes.