The SPI Supplies MgO Single Crystal Substrate products are used widely for HTSC (high temperature superconductor) thin film coatings applications worldwide. There is also a growing amount of interest in using these substrates, because of their economical cost, for other applications that previously would not have justified the higher cost of MgO, such as for use as substrates for the III to V elements.
The standard orientation is along the (100) planes. Other orientations at the present time are not available.
The crystals are highly transparent, permitting good transmission down to the UV and IR ranges of the spectrum. No more does the analytical chemist have to use one substrate slide for UV (such as quartz) and another one for IR, with MgO, the same slide can be used for both types of analysis.
New applications are being found outside of the HTSC applications area, for example, in research studying the epitaxial effects of substrates on the crystallization of polymers. Other applications include the deposition of ferro electric thin film coatings on magnesium oxide substrates. And there are also growing applications for MgO in the field of plasma display panel (PDP) technology.
The products are available "epi-polished" on either one side or two sides and are available as standard products in the form of 0.5 mm thick "plates" or wafers (round discs). The most commonly asked for sizes are listed below as "standard" items, however we can produce our high quality MgO single crystal substrate materials in just about any size or shape needed, up to 3" (75 mm) diameter or square. They are also available as a standard product in 10 mm cubes. Just let us know your requirements and if in wafer form, whether polished two sides or just one side.
Because MgO tends to be hygroscopic, the crystals are specially cleaned and packaged in order to result in a very long shelf life.