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HIPIMS processes and other pulsed plasma processes are becoming more and more popular for coating applications in industry and R&D. To exploit the full potential of HIPIMS processes for production and film development, continuous pulse-resolved measurements are essential to optimize the coating process in terms of deposition rate, film composition and morphology, as the composition of the plasma particles changes during the HIPIMS pulse.
So far, spectroscopic and electrical plasma monitoring and process control is available by means of pulse-averaging data acquisition only. Expensive high-end diagnostic equipment is capable to acquire pulse-resolved data, however, with the lack of continuous operation and real-time feedback control.
This presentation will introduce continuous spectroscopic and electrical pulse-resolved data acquisition with unprecedented time resolution and sampling rate in a multichannel setup at reasonable expenses. The continuous monitoring of the temporal behavior of particle densities as well as voltage and current within the pulse width over the complete coating process allows a precise synchronization of substrate biasing, secondary target pulsing (kick pulsing/bipolar pulsing) and pulse power as well as optimization of reactive gas flow. This will enhance process stability and production quality in industrial application and provide R&D new opportunities to tailor coatings with advanced or new properties.
Examples of a HIPIMS process with metallic Ti and reactive TiO₂ and pulsed-DC applications with Al and AlN demonstrating the pulse-resolved and continuous data acquisition are presented.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0061

Over the past years, increased understanding of arc behaviour during thin film deposition processes has led to improvements in plasma power supply design. This has helped significantly minimize negative effects related to arcing. In this contribution, we demonstrate the effect of different arc handling parameters available at the power supplies that can be used to tailor arcing characteristics during sputtering of insulating films. We show the effect of arc management parameters on arc energies, backed by experimental studies on silicon oxide and aluminium oxide processes performed in an industrial drum coater.
To deposit these insulating materials, different power delivery modes are available to a user such as dual magnetron bipolar mode (BP) and dynamic reverse pulsing mode (DRP). We discuss the differences between these two modes, provide an in-depth statistical study to showcase the effect of pulsing frequency on these modes, and compare them in terms of arc rates and energies.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0020

As greater demands are placed upon manufacturing, coatings by physical vapor deposition (PVD), chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and plasma-assisted CVD (PACVD) are in many cases essential to increase productivity and to ensure excellent product quality while minimizing production downtime and scrap rate in forming and molding tool applications.
CrN coatings with and without the addition of tungsten remains an excellent choice for many forming applications. However, the wear properties at elevated temperatures under certain tribological conditions, such as observed in high temperature Pin on Disking (POD) Testing can be improved. One approach that can be used to improve the high temperature tribology of CrN is to deposit a CrxOy or (CrW)_xO_y top layer over CrN or CrWN, respectively.
This paper details the investigation of the tribological properties at room temperature, 400°C, 600°C and 800°F of CrN + Cr_xO_y as well as CrWN + (CrW)_xO_y deposited in commercial PVD arc chambers. The industrial applications where such coatings have benefited are in certain hot forging, die casting, and plastic molding applications.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0042

Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) is now a well-established process broadly used in the manufacture of leading-edge semiconductor chips. ALD is required for this application due to its high level of precision and ability for conformal deposition of pinhole-free coatings on complex surfaces. These same coating attributes are highly desirable in other applications, such as thin film encapsulation, on the large area substrates used in the display and photovoltaic industries. But to date, scaling of ALD processes to such large substrates, with sufficient throughput and at the low cost required for these applications, has been elusive. In this work, a novel Spatial Plasma Enabled ALD (S-PEALD) process is demonstrated that offers the economic scalability of ALD to these large area substrates. The use of a simple DC plasma source, enabled by the use of spatial processing, allows plasma generation over the multi-meter distances required for these substrate sizes. Meanwhile, a novel method for spatial precursor separation provides the means to utilize a simple, compact, and rapidly moving coating head for executing the ALD cycle. In combination with a mixed oxide barrier material, a process is demonstrated that provides a path to the in-line deposition of OLED-quality barrier coatings on multi-meter substrates, with a takt time of less than one minute.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0022

Normandale Community College offers a 2-year AAS degree and certificate programs in Vacuum and Thin Film Technology for technician education. Through a series of projects funded by the National Science Foundation Advanced Technological Education (NSF-ATE) program, Normandale’s Vacuum Technology faculty and staff have introduced, evaluated and adopted significant changes related to its vacuum and thin film technology program curriculum and the program’s delivery modes. These changes have enhanced the program’s ability to reach and engage new students. Many of these students are incumbent workers who are already working in the field using vacuum systems. In the current NSF funded project, Normandale faculty are developing a new curriculum that integrates instruction of foundational skills in automation with vacuum system operations. This curriculum will address skills development related to using documentation in support of maintenance and troubleshooting activities; setting up and testing the electrical interface between a controller, input and output (I/O) devices, and the system’s pumps, gauges, valves and other instrumentation; and creating a simple human machine interface (HMI) program that automates vacuum system functions. The course learning outcomes have been reviewed by the program’s advisory group participants and updated based on their feedback. This new curriculum which links automation skills with vacuum system operations is intended to support upskilling/reskilling incumbent workers.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0039

Gravitational-wave detectors (GWD) are ultra-sensitive, large-scale facilities whose successful operation depends critically -among various factors- on the performance of high-reflective mirrors. These consist of doublets of high- and low-refractive-index amorphous oxide coatings deposited by ion beam sputtering (IBS). Their performance, defined in terms of high reflectivity, low optical absorption and low thermal noise, can be enhanced by optimizing the constituent materials, the deposition and post-deposition processes such as the thermal annealing. In this contribution, an implementation of real-time spectroscopic ellipsometry is proposed as a convenient tool to understand the evolution of coatings properties during the post-deposition thermal annealing. The amorphous titania-tantala coating and the annealing protocol considered here match those currently used in mirrors for GWD. In-situ analysis shows the evolution of the coating refractive index and thickness throughout the annealing, including the heating and cooling ramps. Results indicate that the current annealing protocol leaves room for further possible modifications in the coatings properties and suggest ways to optimize it. The in-situ analysis discussed here can be beneficial to screen and validate other coating materials as well as to test new annealing protocols to enhance the properties of mirror coatings for GWD applications.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0029

As multi-pass, multilayer flexible coated devices grow in complexity, the need for modulatory and versatility in a vacuum R2R system is essential. The ability to incorporate a wide range for PVD source technologies and monitoring across multiple wavelengths while still maintaining precision controls and substrate handling, including particle management, substrate interleaves, thermal control in a single pass or throughout hundreds of passes is required. Delivering state of the art R2R Vacuum deposition systems for precision layers can also be enhanced by leveraging laser technology for annealing or surface modification for individual device performance.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0052

The continuous advancements in power electronics components lead to faster event responses. In turn, the advantages are higher accuracy and lower defects in layer stack and process controls. These are all welcomed in our world as we continuously work toward stability and repeatability in our individual coating competencies. Higher-speed internal components have resulted in faster arc detection, faster arc response time, and lower, adjustable arc energies. Whether you are using DC, pulsed DC, bipolar pulsed DC or RF, we must wrestle with the reality of power supply generational discontinuation. High-power sinewave technologies such as Advanced Energy's Crystal^® have become obsolete, presenting the challenge to learn new process parameters for different materials. However, new AE technology advancements and application support can help you plan, test, qualify and integrate the latest power supply technologies in your systems. This presentation highlights our solutions.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0053

Our engineering team, with over 40 years' experience, is offering custom made, deposition systems including but not only: Sputtering, EB gun, Thermal, Ion Beam, Plasma, ALD – PLD and Low Temperature organic materials. With reputation for excellence - hundreds of satisfied customers in the high vacuum and ultra-high vacuum industry, research labs and scientific community around the world.
VST developed cluster tools with robot sample transfer often integrated with Inert Gas Glove Box and encapsulation for OLED processes.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0055

This talk will outline the principles of remote plasma optical emission spectroscopy and demonstrate its capabilities within various industry sectors.
Gencoa’s ‘Optix’ uses a remote plasma spectroscopy concept which generates a small plasma within the sensor head. A built-in spectrometer analyses the plasma, automatically interpreting the light spectrum to provide quantitative measurement of the presence and concentration of gas within the vacuum.
The Optix spectral information and sophisticated back-end software creates a range of uses for a wide range of applications, including contaminating processes involving hydrocarbons, solvents and long-chain polymers.
The Optix can be applied to many applications and processes including PVD, ALD, Leak detection, heat treatment, hot isostatic pressing and process gas analysis. These will be briefly discussed.
The sensor has several distinct advantages over conventional quadrupole mass spectrometers which will also be considered, including operation over a wide pressure range – no requirement for differential pumping; No filaments and low maintenance; Direct monitoring of the vacuum with msec response time; Significantly less expensive than RGA and differential pump combination.
Gencoa has utilised the technique to develop a dedicated leak detector which does not use helium. This is targeted at industry sectors where leak rates of 1 x 10^-7 mbar.l/s (equivalent helium leak rate) are sufficient as a pass/fail criterion.

https://doi.org/10.14332/svc24.proc.0054