The minority carrier lifetime has been measured onn‐type 6H‐ and 4H‐SiC epitaxial layers. We observe inherently longer lifetimes in 4H layers compared to 6H‐SiC layers. A value as high as 2.1 &mgr;s has been measured at room temperature in 4H‐SiC, however, large variations may be observed over the surface. The lifetime increases with temperature and at a typical operating temperature of a device the lifetime is close to 5 &mgr;s. The lifetime appears to be correlated with the morphology of the epitaxial film showing that the lifetime limiting defect may be related to a crystalline imperfection. A strong correlation can also be seen with the thickness of the epitaxial layers. ©1996 American Institute of Physics.