Introduction
HOYA is the first manufacturer to have successfully developed a technology for mass-producing large monocrystal silicon carbide (SiC) substrates for use in high-performance semiconductor devices. This SiC substrate is made of so called "cubic SiC" (3C-SiC). With this development, it is now possible to manufacture large, defect-free 3C-SiC substrates at low cost, comparable to those involved in the manufacture of Si, a widely used semiconductor substrate material. Semiconductor devices using this 3C-SiC substrate are expected to significantly reduce power losses in electrical devices, industrial equipment, home appliances, and other devices that are subject to increasingly stringent power-conservation requirements. Additionally, electric vehicles and high-speed information processing are potentially promising applications for SiC-based semiconductors.