US 12,170,194 B2
Magnetron plasma sputtering arrangement
Eugen Stamate, Roskilde (DK)
Assigned to DANMARKS TEKNISKE UNIVERSITET, Kongens Lyngby (DK)
Appl. No. 17/761,084
Filed by Danmarks Tekniske Universitet, Kongens Lyngby (DK)
PCT Filed Sep. 17, 2020, PCT No. PCT/EP2020/076047
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Mar. 16, 2022,
PCT Pub. No. WO2021/053115, PCT Pub. Date Mar. 25, 2021.
Claims priority of application No. PA 201970572 (DK), filed on Sep. 18, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0351952 A1, Nov. 3, 2022
Int. Cl. H01J 37/34 (2006.01); C23C 14/35 (2006.01)
CPC H01J 37/3405 (2013.01) [C23C 14/35 (2013.01); H01J 37/3417 (2013.01); H01J 37/3447 (2013.01)] 14 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A magnetron plasma sputtering arrangement comprising:
an evacuable chamber operatively coupled to a pumping system for generating a vacuum and a pressure and gas flow control;
a sputtering head arranged, in the evacuable chamber, wherein the sputtering head comprises:
a grounded anode; and
a sputtering cathode comprising:
a sputtering target; and
magnets for enhancing a plasma produced at the sputtering target, the sputtering target operatively connected to an RF power supply for producing a plasma at the sputtering target and releasing plasma sputtered material from a sputtering target surface;
a substrate holder for a substrate for receiving plasma sputtered material on a surface of the substrate, thereby forming a thin film of plasma sputtered material on the surface of the substrate;
a tuning electrode configured to adjust a DC self-bias and operatively connected to a biasing source with respect to ground, wherein the tuning electrode defines only a single aperture defining at least one axis of length arranged in a flow path for plasma between the sputtering cathode and the substrate, such that a plasma sputtered material originating at the sputtering target will traverse the aperture before depositing onto the surface of the substrate as a thin film;
wherein a size of the aperture and the at least one axis of length of the aperture are matched to a size of the sputtering target such that a cross-sectional area defined by the aperture is less than or equal to 1.5 times a cross-sectional area defined by the sputtering target.