Abstract: A method for producing high-purity silicon carbide powder includes filling starch-based packing chips or expanded starch as organic raw material into a container open at the top; introducing the container filled with the raw material into a furnace and heating the packing chips, or the expanded starch, gradually to a temperature of 2,000° C. whilst feeding inert gas or under vacuum to graphitize the packing chips or the expanded starch into porous graphite pieces; feeding halogen gas, such as chlorine or fluorine, into the furnace to purify the porous graphite pieces at a temperature of >1,800° C. to remove foreign metals from the porous graphite pieces by forming metal chloride, and converting the porous graphite pieces into powdered silicon carbide by feeding SiO with argon as carrier gas at a temperature of >1,200° C. at a pressure of 30 mbar or higher.

Abstract: A method for producing porous carbon or includes filling pulverised dry or dried wheat or rice starch into a mould/a container (1) as a compact mass (2); compressing/compacting the mass (2) in the mould/the container (1); initiating a shrinkage process by heating the mass (2) in the filled mould/container (1) in a kiln to a first temperature level of 170° C.-450° C. in an oxidising or inert atmosphere; stabilising the heated mass (2) over an extended period of time, then slowly heating the mass (2) further in the kiln in a heating ramp for carbonisation at a second temperature level to >1,000° C. or, for graphitisation, to >2,500° C. under shielding gas to form the most compact blank (5) possible; and removing the compact blank (5) from the mould/the container.

Abstract: A process for 3D printing articles made of carbon or graphite includes producing a flowable polymeric mixture from a UV permeable and polymerizable polymer or cellulose and a UV crosslinkable resin, admixing the polymeric mixture with sugar and/or cellulose until the mixture has a consistency such that it can be filled into a 3D printer and processed thereby, homogenizing the mixture at room temperature or elevated temperature, filling a 3D printer with the mixture, layerwise printing a shaped article with simultaneous exposure to UV radiation for layerwise crosslinking of the UV crosslinkable resin, cleaning the shaped article, introducing the UV precured shaped article into a furnace and stabilizing the UV precured shaped article in air at a predetermined stabilizing temperature until all volatile constituents have outgassed from the prefabricated shaped article and subsequently high temperature treating the shaped article for carbonization or graphitization in a furnace under protective gas.

Abstract: A method for producing carbonized or graphitized molding parts is particularly simple to implement and also allows producing complex molding parts without mechanical post-processing. This is achieved by the production of a pourable liquid polymer mixture which is as homogenized as possible, consisting of a carbon granulate, pitch, soot or graphite powder and polyacrylnitrile dissolved in a solvent, filling the liquid polymer mixture into a casting mold and immersing the filled casting mold in water over a predetermined period of time until the polymer mixture is sufficiently cured and dimensionally stable, and subsequent breaking of the casting mold and stabilizing the prefabricated cured molding part by uniform heating up in a furnace in air at a predefined temperature for stabilizing and degassing volatile constituents, and performing a high-temperature treatment for carbonizing or graphitizing the molding part in a furnace under protective gas.

Abstract: A method for producing carbon or graphite foam parts with high purity level for high-temperature insulation under vacuum or protective gas, as insulating material or as filter material, includes the following steps: introducing dry, foamable starch (1) into an open-top container (2) having a round or angular cross section, until the base (3) of the container (2) is covered amply and uniformly with starch (1); introducing the container (2) partly filled with starch (1) into an oven (4), and heating the container (2) to a foaming temperature of >180° C. over a prolonged period of several hours to foam the starch (1), until the container (2) has filled completely with carbon foam (6); withdrawing the container (2) from the oven (4) and extracting the carbon foam (6) after sufficient cooling, and optionally portioning the carbon foam (6) into carbon foam parts (6.1).

Abstract: A plasma boat for receiving wafers with partial damping of the plasma deposition comprises a number of boat plates spaced apart in parallel, which are provided with wafer holders for receiving upright wafers, in order to securely hold the wafers during transport and during the depositing process in a coating chamber, and wherein the boat plates are mechanically connected to one another by electrically insulating spacers. This provides a plasma boat, with regulated plasma deposition, which ensures a deposition on wafers that is uniform over the surface area thereof and has a constant layer thickness. This is achieved by a damping element (12) being respectively arranged between the wafer holders (16) located parallel to one another, between adjacent boat plates (15), and electrically insulated with respect to the latter on spacer elements (2).

Abstract: A method for producing carbon or graphite foam parts with high purity level for high-temperature insulation under vacuum or protective gas, as insulating material or as filter material, includes the following steps: introducing dry, foamable starch (1) into an open-top container (2) having a round or angular cross section, until the base (3) of the container (2) is covered amply and uniformly with starch (1); introducing the container (2) partly filled with starch (1) into an oven (4), and heating the container (2) to a foaming temperature of >180° C. over a prolonged period of several hours to foam the starch (1), until the container (2) has filled completely with carbon foam (6); withdrawing the container (2) from the oven (4) and extracting the carbon foam (6) after sufficient cooling, and optionally portioning the carbon foam (6) into carbon foam parts (6.1).

Abstract: A plasma boat for receiving wafers with partial damping of the plasma deposition comprises a number of boat plates spaced apart in parallel, which are provided with wafer holders for receiving upright wafers, in order to securely hold the wafers during transport and during the depositing process in a coating chamber, and wherein the boat plates are mechanically connected to one another by electrically insulating spacers. This provides a plasma boat, with regulated plasma deposition, which ensures a deposition on wafers that is uniform over the surface area thereof and has a constant layer thickness. This is achieved by a damping element (12) being respectively arranged between the wafer holders (16) located parallel to one another, between adjacent boat plates (15), and electrically insulated with respect to the latter on spacer elements (2).

Abstract: An improved protective layer is provided for PECVD graphite boats for receiving wafers and for transporting the wafers in or through PECVD coating systems, in particular in the photovoltaics industry. A more homogeneous antireflection layer on silicon substrates is achieved by virtue of the PECVD boat of graphite being provided with an electrically conductive hard material coating of at least boron carbide (B4C).

Abstract: The invention relates to a susceptor which is for the processing chamber of protective gas and vacuum high-temperature processing installations and consists of graphite or CFC, has a tunnel-like design, and can be closed by a cover at both its ends. The invention should allow the provision of a flexibly and modularly extendable susceptor that has a material-saving design and, in particular, uniform thermal expansion. This is achieved by virtue of the fact that said susceptor (1) consists of a plurality of modules (2) aligned one next to the other along a continuous tunnel, that each module (2) consists of a tubular section (3) and a base panel (4) fixed thereto, and that the end faces (5) between each pair of modules (2) are interconnected in a form-fitting manner.

Abstract: A PECVD boat has at least one boat plate for accommodating wafers, for transport into and out of vacuum coating chambers. The boat plate is oriented vertically and has a plurality of U-shaped accommodating slots for accommodating wafers, which slots are oriented in the longitudinal direction of the boat plate and are open at the top, in such a way that the wafers inserted into the accommodating slots are aligned with the plate line of the boat plate.

Abstract: An improved protective layer is provided for PECVD graphite boats for receiving wafers and for transporting the wafers in or through PECVD coating systems, in particular in the photovoltaics industry. A more homogeneous antireflection layer on silicon substrates is achieved by virtue of the PECVD boat of graphite being provided with an electrically conductive hard material coating of at least boron carbide (B4C).

Abstract: A substrate support for receiving substrates or wafers to be processed and for transporting said substrates or wafers in or through processing installations has universal application, is easily adaptable for specific tasks and is economical in use of material. Within a frame made of longitudinal and transverse supports, a plurality of longitudinal and transverse members are arranged intersecting in a grid-like manner, such that a base grid for directly or indirectly receiving substrates is formed. Both the longitudinal and transverse supports and the longitudinal and transverse members are positively connected to one another.

Abstract: The invention relates to a susceptor which is for the processing chamber of protective gas and vacuum high-temperature processing installations and consists of graphite or CFC, has a tunnel-like design, and can be closed by a cover at both its ends. The invention should allow the provision of a flexibly and modularly extendable susceptor that has a material-saving design and, in particular, uniform thermal expansion. This is achieved by virtue of the fact that said susceptor (1) consists of a plurality of modules (2) aligned one next to the other along a continuous tunnel, that each module (2) consists of a tubular section (3) and a base panel (4) fixed thereto, and that the end faces (5) between each pair of modules (2) are interconnected in a form-fitting manner.

Abstract: A form and force locking connection of special graphite parts is provided to form multi-part components, at which the joints/connection point has almost the same physical properties as the material surrounding the connection point. The form and force locking connection is achieved by the graphite parts being interlocked at the opposing front surfaces in a three-dimensional manner, so that one front surface of a first graphite part has the positive form of the interlocking and the front surface of a second opposing graphic part has the negative form of the interlocking, and the interlocking exclusively has evenly transitioned contours between side surfaces of the graphite parts.

Abstract: A substrate support for receiving substrates or wafers to be processed and for transporting said substrates or wafers in or through processing installations has universal application, is easily adaptable for specific tasks and is economical in use of material. Within a frame made of longitudinal and transverse supports, a plurality of longitudinal and transverse members are arranged intersecting in a grid-like manner, such that a base grid for directly or indirectly receiving substrates is formed. Both the longitudinal and transverse supports and the longitudinal and transverse members are positively connected to one another.

Abstract: A form and force locking connection of special graphite parts is provided to form multi-part components, at which the joints/connection point has almost the same physical properties as the material surrounding the connection point. The form and force locking connection is achieved by the graphite parts being interlocked at the opposing front surfaces in a three-dimensional manner so that one front surface of a first graphite part has the positive form of the interlocking and the front surface of a second opposing graphic part has the negative form of the interlocking, and the interlocking exclusively has evenly transitioned contours between side surfaces of the graphite parts.