Physical vapor transport experiments have been done with regard to mass transport and the morphology of 4H silicon carbide layers. Especially the very early stages of crystal growth were investigated. It was found that the growth rate is hardly influenced by the seed thickness. By using seeds of different off-orientations, morphological features of the grown surfaces could be revealed, which can be attributed to the formation of macrodefects. Two types of growth defects are discussed, which arise from the disturbance of the step flow either by step bunching or by micropipes. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.