We have demonstrated that high-quality aluminium nintride (AIN) single crystal can be grown at high growth rates by hydride vapor phase epitaxy (HVPE) with a help of using AIN templates and step growth technique. A colorless and transparent AIN layer with 83 mu m thick was grown at a growth rate of 57 mu m/h at 1450 degrees C. Its full-width at half-maximum for 10 0 0 21 plane was 295 arcsec and that for I 10 T I I plane was 432 arcsec. Grown AIN layer was transparent in the visible and ultraviolet region and a sharp absorption edge with hand gap energy of 5.96 eV was confined. (c) 2007 Published by Elsevier B.V.