L36-G1+TG1-W-MAGNETRON SPUTTERING

The Phenomenon of SPUTTERING

Ejection of atoms, ions, neutrals, clusters by
bombardment of a solid surface with energetic ions
#𝒔𝒑𝒖𝒕𝒕𝒆𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝑨𝒕𝒐𝒎𝒔
Sputter Yield =# 𝑰𝒏𝒄𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒋𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒆 𝑰𝒐𝒏𝒔=

𝑴𝒎 𝑬𝒎
Y= 𝜶 𝟐
𝑴+𝒎 𝑼𝑴

M= Mass of the Host atom (TARGET)

m=mass of the Projectile Ion
E m= KE of the Projectile Ion
UM= BE of the atoms of Host/Target
α=Surface Emission Factor: Depends on
Sticking/Incident angle
 SPUTTER COATING CHARACTERISTICS

COMPONENT/SUBSTRATE
SOLID SOURCE IS USED

COATING SOURCE GEOMETRY CAN BE

MANIPULATED

DEPOSITION RATES CAN BE

SPUTTERED ATOMS CONTROLLED

COATING COMPOSITION AND SOURCE

(TARGET COMPOSITION ARE SAME)

BIASED DEPOSITION IS POSIBLE

PLASMA COATING ADHESION IS EXCELLENT

DEPOSITION AT HIGH TEMPERATURE

POSSIBLE

TARGET ATOMICALLY SMOOTH COATINGS

SPUTTER DEPOSITION PROCESS
Sputtering: Plasma
or focussed ion beam
is made to strike a
material surface.
Engg component to be
Due to energy coated
transfer by impact,
ions, particles, Vacuum Chamber Coating
neutrals are ejected. P= 10-2 - 10 -3 mbar

This is sputtered Sputtered flux:

Ar+ ion
material flux. The M0, M+, 𝒉𝝑
sputtered material
flux is intercepted by
a component
Coatings: Thickness up to
1- 10µm Material to be
All metals deposited
Ceramics
Carbides To Vacuum
Nitrides Pump
TiN, CrN, TiC, WC, Ti, Cr
MAGNETRON SPUTTERING– WHAT IT IS?
YET ANOTHER ATOM BY ATOM DEPOSITION TECHNIQUE

A COLD PLASMA PROCESSING COATING TECHNIQUE

SPUTTERING OCCURS BY IONS PRESENT IN MAGNETICALLY CONFINED

PLASMA

IT IS A MAGNETICALLY CONFINED ( 100-1000G) COLD PLASMA

ENHANCED PLASMA ENERGY AND PLASMA DENSITY

VERY EFFECTIVE REACTIVE SPUTTERING TO GET CARBIDES AND NITRIDES

HIGH ADHESION/ATOMICALLY SMOOTH COATINGS

NANO COMPOSITE/NANOMETRIC MULTILAYERS POSSIBLE

MAGNETIC FIELD ALIGNMENT
ANODE
SUBSTRATE

𝑬
𝑩
PLASMA PLASMA

CATHODE

S N S

IRON
SPUTTERING-ELECTROMAGNETIC PARAMETERS

LORENZ FORCE=
𝑭𝑳 = 𝒒 𝑬 + 𝒗𝒙𝑩

FC= Centripetal Force = q v⊥B

= RL = Larmour Radius=
𝟐𝒎𝑼
CONFINED MAGNETIZED R L=
PLASMA 𝒒𝑩𝟐

U = Cathode Potential, -600V (approx),

RL=0.1-10 mm for electron but for
Argon it has a value 30-3000 mm
MAGNETRON SPUTTERING-SYSTEM DESIGN
THE KELLER- SIMMON EQUATION-
SPUTTERED ATOM FLUX FROM
TARGET

𝟑𝝀 𝟐𝒅
𝜱 = 𝜱𝟎 𝟏 − 𝒆𝒙𝒑 −
𝟐𝒅 𝟑𝝀

ø0= Atomic/ionic flux that arrives on component/substrate

ø= Atomic/ionic flux that gets sputtered from Target
λ = Mean free path
d = Target to substrate distance
 Magnetron Sputtering Process.

IMPUL
SE DC

PULSED
DC

PLASMA DENSITY IN TYPICAL DC SPUTTERING: IONS: > 1017/m3

Electrons 1015/m3
RF
PULSED DC /RF > 1018/m3

IMPULSE: APPROXIMATES DC

THERMAL PLASMA—1023/m3
A COMMERCIALLY AVAILABLE
MAGNETRON SPUTTER CATHODE
MAGNETRON PLASMA ENGULFS
TYPES SUITABLE FOR LARGE AREA SUBSTRATE. CURRENT
COATING. CURRENT DENSITY~10mA/cm2: HIGH
DENSITY<< 1mA/cm2: ADHESION COATINGS
CONVENTIONAL
CURRENT DENSITY< SUBSTRATE
1mA/cm2: ROUTINE SUBSTRATE

SUBSTRATE
PLASMA

PLASMA

PLASMA TARGET
TARGET
N S N
TARGET N S N TYPE-II-UNBALANCED
MAGNETRON
TYPE-I-UNBALANCED SPUTTERING
N S N MAGNETRON
SPUTTERING
BALANCED MAGNETRON
SPUTTERING
LARGE AREA CO-PLANAR CLOSED FIELD
MAGNETRON SPUTTERING( TOP DOWN DEPOSITION

N S N S N S

TARGET TARGET

COATING
SUBSTRATE
 LARGE AREA
S N S
INDUSTRIAL
TARGET MAGNETRON
SPUTTERING-
VERTICALLY
OPPOSED CLOSED
FIELD
CONFIGURATION

ROTATING
SUBSTRATE
HOLDER

TARGET

N S N
 LARGE AREA
N S N
INDUSTRIAL
TARGET MAGNETRON
SPUTTERING-
VERTICALLY
OPPOSED MIRROR
FIELD
CONFIGURATION

ROTATING
SUBSTRATE
HOLDER

TARGET

N S N
MAGNETRON SPUTTERING-PROCESS DESCRIPTION
The target materials are fitted onto magnetron cathode. The
chamber is evacuated to 10-6 mbar.

Back fill the chamber with Ar gas via mass Flow controllers

A potential gradient is established between target and the

substrate

The electrons are generated and accelerated. These get

confined by magnetic fields.

The electrons collide with process gas and ionizes them. The
ions impinge on target and starts sputtering them. The
sputtered species is intercepted by substrate and coating
formation is initiated.

In unbalanced magnetron sputtering there is magnetic

assymetry which pushes plasma directly to the substrate.

Substrate heating ensures crystalline films formation with

superior density.
GENERAL CHARACTERISTICS OF MAGNETRON
SPUTTERED HARD COATINGS
HIGH DENSITY: > 90%
HOT ROTATING JOB
LOW SURFACE ROUGHNESS: 1-5 Å ( 0.1-0.5 nm) HOLDER WITH
NEGATIVE BIAS
HIGH ADHESION STRENGHT TiN COATING
( BIASING OPERATION ALLOWS NITROGEN/ARGON
HIGH IMPACT VELOCITY OF IONS PLASMA WITH Ti
IONS
AS WELL AS ELECTRO STATIC INTERACTION)-
-- COMPONENT BIAS USED (-500V--1000V)
Ti- TARGET
HIGH DEPOSITION TEMP:~ 200-800 degC

DUE TO LOW ROUGHNESS, FRICTION COEFFICIENT IS LOW

( ~10-4)

HIGH WEAR RESISTANCE- INSIGNIFICANTLY LOW MATERIAL

LOSS
ACHIEVABLE THICKNESS: ~ ( 1nm- 5 µm)

TiAlN/CrAlN/ZrAlN/ TiAlC/ZrAlC possible by Dual beam Sputtering

WHAT MATERIALS CAN BE COATED?
UNIQUE FOR TRIBOLOGY COATINGS- WEAR PROTECTION

MOST IMPORTANT SERIES OF ENGINEERING COATINGS ARE BASED

ON TRANSITION METAL CARBIDES AND NITRIDES/ THEIR
MULTILAYERS

TiN/AlN/CrN/VN/NbN/WN/TaN/ TiC/WC/TaC

LUBRICATING FILMS LIKE MoS2/TiB2

CARBON FILMS BY SPUTTERING

TECHNICAL OXIDES LIKE TiO2/ YBCO/Al2O3

REACTIVE MAGNETRON SPUTTERING HAS EMERGED AS THE
MOST EFFICIENT TECHNIQUE TO SYNTHESIZE
NITRIDE/CARBIDE BASED COATINGS FOR PREVENTING TOOL
WEAR
SYNTHESIS OF OXIDATION AND WEAR RESISTANT MULTILAYERS
OXIDATION RESISTANCE OF AN ENGG COATING COMES
FROM AN PASSIVATING SURFACE TiAlN
Al2O3 AND Cr2O3 ARE IMPORTANT PASSIVATING FILMS

HENCE MULTILAYERS THAT ARE BOTH OXIDATION N2

RESISTANT AND HARD CONTAIN EITHER Al or Cr.
Ti Al

TiAlN AND CrAlN ARE IMPORTANT OXIDATION RESISTANT

LAYERS

TiAlN GETS COVERED WITH Al2O3 AND CrAlN GETS

COVERED WITH Cr2O3 UPON OXIDATION.

BOTH TiAlN CAN BE SYNTHESIZED BY SPUTTERING FROM

Ti AND Al TARGETS SIMULTANEOUSLY

BOTH CrAlN CAN BE SYNTHESIZED BY SPUTTERING FROM

Cr AND Al TARGETS SIMULTANEOUSLY
HARD COATING ROTATING/HEATED
SYNTHESIS-TiAlN COMPONENT HOLDER
WITH VOLTAGE BIAS
TiAlN
P= 10-2 mbar

NITROGEN ION ENRICHED PLASMA

DUAL BEAM MAGNETRON SPUTTERING-CO SPUTTERING

COLD PLASMA PROCESSING

MULTI-LAYERING BY REACTIVE
MAGNETRON SPUTTERING
AlN-LAYER

TiN-LAYER

TiN
AlN
TiN
10-3 mbar
AlN
TiN
AlN
TiN
AlN
TiN
AlN
MAGNETRON SPUTTER GUNS

DUAL TARGET MAGNETRON SPUTTERING TO DEPOSIT NANOMETRIC

( TiN/AlN)n PERIODIC SUPER HARD MULTI-LAYER
 Magnetron Sputtering

Al
 Supplied by M/s. MECA, France  Thin films (TiN, TiAlN, AlN, TiC)
 Sputter guns: 2 RF (600W) & 1 DC(1500W)  Nanocrystalline Multilayer thin
 Substrate rotation, Heating (1000C) films
 Precise control of vacuum and gas flow  Reactive processing Ti
 Thickness monitor (Maxtek)  Precise thickness control
SYNTHESIS OF OXIDATION AND WEAR RESISTANT
MULTILAYERS
POSSIBLE BY STACKING OF TWO DIFFERENT NITRIDES

ONE CAN HAVE SEQUENTIAL SPUTTERING FROM TWO MAGNETRON GUNS UNDER N2
PLASMA

TiN/NbN ( 30 Noss 5 nm thick layers give hardness above 40 GPa)

SUPER HARDNESS RESULTS FROM DISLOCATION MOTION BEING ARRESTED AT

INTERFACES.

THIS EFFECT DOES NOT LEAD TO WEAR AND DEFORMATION OF COMPONENT ON WHICH
IT IS QUOTED

OTHER MULTILAYER ARCHITECTURES ARE CrN/TiN, NbN/VN, TiN/ ZrN

DISLOCATIONS ARE TRAPPED AT

INTERFACES. THERE ARE MULTIPLE
INTERFACES EACH CONTRIBUTING TO
OVER HARDNESS. MULTIPLE
INTERFACES ALSO PREVENT CRACK
PROPAGATION THEREBY
CONTRIBUTING TO FRACTURE
TOUGHNESS.
 Ti1-xAlxN / TiN Multilayer thin films
SIMS Multilayer thin films of TiAlN/TiN

Highlights:
1. Periodic multilayer thin films
synthesized(total thickness
900nm)
2. Hardness profile shows
reverse Hall-Petch relationship.
3. Maximum hardness obtained
was Reverse Hall-Petch
34GPa. relationship
4. Sharp interface was observed
between the layers
Feby et al, IEEE Xplore (2011)
APPLICATIONS
INDUSTRIAL COMPONENTS THAT
BENEFIT FROM MAGNETRON
SPUTTERING
TOOL STEEL(TiN)

HSS CUTTING TOOLS( TiAlN

BIOMEDICAL IMPLANTS(Ti/TiN)

ANTI-REFLECTION COATINGS FOR GLASS ( CaF2)

ANTI-FOGGING COATING: N: TiO2

COATINGS FOR SURGICAL TOOLS

HARD COATINGS-CARBIDE/NITRIDES FOR WEAR PROTECTION

HEAT REFLECTING COATINGS/ SiC/SiO 2

LUBLICATING LAYERS-SOLID FILMS—TiB2/MoS2

COMPARISON OF EVAPORATION Vs SPUTTERING AS COATING
DEPOSITION MODES
PROCESS PARAMETER EVAPORATION SPUTTERING

ION ENERGY/ATOM ENERGY 0.1 eV 1-10 eV

UPTO 40 eV possible in pulsed
and impulsed mode
COATING DENSITY LOW HIGH

GRAIN SIZE LARGER SMALLER

ADHESION STRENGTH LOW HIGH

VACUUM LEVEL 10-5 to 10-10 mbar(HIGH) 10-2 – 10-3 mbar (LOW)

DIRECTIONALITY HIGH LOW

IMPURITY NIL GASEOUS IONS GET

POINT SOURCE
BIASING OF COMPONENT DURING
COATING
COATING STOICHIOMETRY
COMPONENT HEATING &
ROTATION DURING DEPOSITIO
LOWER THICKNESS UNIFORMITY
NOT POSSIBLE
( ION ASSISTANCE IS OFTEN
USED)
POOR IN CASE OF COMPOUND
EVAPORATION
Possible-1000 deg C/ 60 rpm
( Max)
IMPLANTED INTO FILM
SPREAD OUT PLASMA-
SUPERIOR THICKNESS
UNIFORMITY
BIASING POSSIBLE
COATING AND TARGET
STOICHIOMETRIES ARE
NEARLY SIMILAR
Possible-1000 deg C/ 60 rpm
( Max)
 ENGINEERING CHALLAGES
DESIGN OF ROTATING CYLINDRICAL MAGNETRONS

PROCESS PLASMA MODELLING

HYDRODYNAMICS AND MASS TRANSFER IN MAGNETRON PLASMA

AUTOMATION OF MULTI-LAYERING PROCESS

TARGET UTILIZATION

USE OF IMPULSE MAGNETRON SPUTTERING TO VALIDATE

INDUSTRIAL COATING PROCESSES- THAT REQUIRE
METALLURGICAL BOND STRENGTH

DUPLEX SURFACE ENGINEERING

ION BEAM ASSISTED MAGNETRON SPUTTERING

ION PLATING
QUESTINS
EXPLAIN PRINCIPLES OF SPUTTERING AND THE SPUTTER
YIELD EQUATION. HOW DOES MAGNETRON SPUTTERING
DIFFERS FROM NORMAL SPUTTERING? EXPLAIN DESIGN OF
A SIMPLE DC DIODE SPUTTERING SYSTEM?

WHAT ARE THE DESIGN FEATURES OF A MAGNETRON SPUTTERING

SYSTEM? EXPLAIN EXPRESSION FOR SPUTTERED ATOM FLUX? HOW
CAN ONE SYNTHESIZE SUPERHARD PERIODIC MULTILAYER [{TiN(10
nm)/NbN( 10 nm)}x30] COATING ARCHITECTURE

STATE THE PURPOSE OF BALANCED, UNBALANCED, CLOSED

FIELD AND MIRROR FIELD MAGNETRON SPUTTERING.

STATE CHARACTERISTICS OF MAGNETRON SPUTTERED

COATINGS. WHAT ARE ENGINEERING CHALLENGES IN
MAGNETRON SPUTTERING?
THANK YOU ALL FOR YOUR ATTENTION