Homoepitaxial growth of high-purity and thick 4H- and 6H-SiC(0 0 0 1) epilayers by an original hot-wall chemical vapor deposition system has been investigated. Under typical growth conditions, the growth rate showed a maximum of 6.7 mum/h at a pressure of 80 Torr, which may be explained by pressure-dependent gas heating. Low-temperature photoluminescence spectra of epilayers were dominated by free exciton peaks. A very low background doping level of 1-2 x 10(13) cm(-3) (n-type) and low trap concentration in the mid 10(11) cm(-3) range have been achieved. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.