| AVS 54th International Symposium | |
| Advanced Surface Engineering | Monday Sessions |
| Session SE+PS-MoA |
| Session: | Pulsed Plasmas in Surface Engineering |
| Presenter: | W.D. Sproul, Reactive Sputtering, Inc. |
| Authors: | R. Chistyakov, Zond, Inc./Zpulser, LLC B. Abraham, Zond, Inc./Zpulser, LLC W.D. Sproul, Reactive Sputtering, Inc. J.J. Moore, Colorado School of Mines J. Lin, Colorado School of Mines |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
Modulated pulse power (MPP) sputtering is a variation of high power pulse magnetron sputtering that overcomes the rate loss issue through modulation of the pulse shape, intensity, and duration. In MPP, the pulse shape and duration and plasma perturbations directly affect the degree of ionization of the sputtered material. In this study, the MPP plasma generator was controlled by a special electronic device that allowed the generation of two different plasma discharges within the same deposition cycle. Nanometer scale layers of material deposited under the two different plasma condition were alternately deposited, and the thickness and structure of each nanolayer was controlled by varying the output voltage pulse shape of the MPP plasma generator. Films of carbon and reactively deposited titanium nitride and chromium nitride were sputtered, and the film structure, orientation, and mechanical properties were analyzed and measured. These variations in the plasma conditions directly affect the film properties, and results of the film property measurements will be presented.