Containerless metal single-crystal growth via electromagnetic levitation

The growth of elemental metal single-crystals is usually achieved through classic growth techniques such as the Czochralski or floating zone methods. Drawbacks of these techniques are the susceptibility to contamination from the crucible and thermal stress-induced defects due to contact with the ambient, which can be mitigated by growing in a containerless environment. We discuss the development of a novel crystal growth apparatus that employs electromagnetic levitation in a vacuum to grow metal single-crystals of superior quality and purity. This apparatus enables two growth modes: containerless undercooled crystallization and levitation-based Czochralski growth. We describe the experimental setup in terms of coil design, sample insertion and collection, seed insertion, and sample position and temperature tracking. As a proof of concept, we show the successful growth of copper single-crystals.