Patent ID: 7588636

Claim:
A method of production of a silicon carbide single crystal by precipitation from a solution using a temperature gradient furnace giving a temperature gradient to a columnar workpiece in its longitudinal direction, comprising: using as said temperature gradient furnace a temperature gradient furnace provided with heat insulating walls surrounding an outer circumference of said columnar workpiece, a heating unit for heating a bottom end of said columnar workpiece through a heating susceptor, and a cooling unit for cooling a top end of said columnar workpiece through a cooling susceptor; stacking, inside said furnace in order from the bottom, a source material rod comprised of silicon carbide, a solvent, a seed crystal, and a support rod supporting said seed crystal at the bottom end of the support rod so as to form said columnar workpiece, heating a bottom end of said source material rod as said bottom end of the columnar workpiece by said heating unit, and cooling a top end of said support rod as said top end of the columnar workpiece by said cooling unit so as to form a temperature gradient inside said columnar workpiece so that the top end face becomes lower in temperature than the bottom end face of said solvent; and causing a silicon carbide single crystal to grow continuously downwardly starting from said seed crystal, wherein said method further comprises: using an inside cylindrical susceptor tightly surrounding the outer circumference of said columnar workpiece.