United States of America As Represented by the Secretary of the Air Force

John K Kennedy

Meckie T Harris

Alton F Armington

John J Larkin

Robert C Marshall

Charles S Sahagian

Ultra high pure quartz is grown by a one step in-situ growth process where the nutrient is high purity silica. A negative temperature gradient is maintained between the nutrient zone and the seed zone until about the start of crystal growth. A sealable container made of silver contains the nutrient and the seed within the autoclave chamber.

Process of making high quality single quartz crystal using silica glass

This invention describes a modified method of growing high purity, compositionally ungraded, single crystals of multicomponent solid solutions by the Czochralski, Kyropoulos, Bridgman or other related melt growth technique. In the method of this invention, the container or crucible used to contain the multicomponent crystal growing melt is fabricated from the higher melting point component of the multicomponent melt while lower melting point components are positioned within the crucible. The temperature of the crucible is then raised beyond the melting point of the lower melting point component to a temperature which is the exact melting point of the solid solution, or crystal alloy desired. This will dissolve an amount of the crucible material (higher melting point component) equal to the exact amount required to produce a solid solution having the desired composition. A seed is then introduced into the melt and normal crystal pulling is initiated resulting in the growth of a compositionally ungraded crystal having a uniform compositional content throughout its structure.

Growing community of inventors

West Roxbury, MA, United States of America

John K Kennedy