Performance of Bridgman furnace operating under projective control

We present the performance of a vertical transparent multizone furnace operating under the projective control algorithm. This Bridgman type furnace is designed for crystal growth applications and can deliver thermal gradients within the range of 2-45/spl deg/C/cm at the maximum temperature of 750/spl deg/C. A multivariable projective control algorithm is used for the temperature control. The control system maintains desired thermal profile despite the effects of thermal loads due to a growing crystal.