| abstract |
A Group III metal element is heated so as to melt, a gas NH 3 containing nitrogen atoms is injected into a melt 3 of the Group III metal element at a temperature lower than the melting point of a nitride to be obtained, thereby producing a nitride microcrystal of the Group III element having high wettability with the melt 3 in the melt 3 of the Group III metal element. A mixture of the Group III nitride microcrystal obtained as mentioned above and the Group III metal element solution is used as a starting material of a liquid phase growth or Group III nitride powders obtained by removing the Group III metal material from the mixture are used as a starting material of a vapor phase growth. Further, a seed crystal or a substrate crystal is immersed in a melt of a Group III element such as gallium, bubbles of a gas containing nitrogen such as ammonia are intermittently come into contact with the surface of the crystal, and the Group III element and the gas containing nitrogen are allowed to react with each other on the surface of the seed crystal or the substrate crystal, thereby allowing the nitride crystal of the Group III element to be grown on the surface of the seed crystal or substrate crystal. |