2. Liquid phase epitaxy

Liquid phase epitaxy is a flow growth technique based on the solubility of a solute (the species to be crystallized) in a solvent. It is based on the fact that the solubility of a species diluted in a solvent is an increasing function of temperature, enabling the solute to crystallize at a temperature well below the melting temperature of the same material. In fact, this method is particularly attractive for the layered growth of materials with high melting temperatures, such as oxides. The driving force behind epitaxial growth is directly correlated to the supersaturation of the solute in the solvent: the introduction of a substrate imbalances the supersaturated solution into a metastable state, leading to crystallization of the solute on the substrate. Good control of the LPE process therefore comes down to good control of solution supersaturation, hence the importance of a good understanding...