In the present work an UHVCVD method was developed which allows the epitaxial growth of 3C-SiC on Si substrates at temperatures below 1000° C. The developed method enable the growth of low stress or nearly stress free single crystalline 3C-SiC layers on Si. The influence of hydrogen on the growth process are be discussed. The structural properties of the 3C-SiC(100) layers were studied with reflection high-energy diffraction, atomic force microscopy, X-ray diffraction and the layer thickness were measured by reflectometry as well as visible ellipsometry. The tensile strain reduction at optimized growth temperature, Si/C ratio in the gas phase and deposition rate are demonstrated by the observation of freestanding SiC cantilevers.