AVS 45th International Symposium
    Thin Films Division Wednesday Sessions
       Session TF-WeA

Paper TF-WeA7
Substrate Bombardment and Heating in Dual Magnetron Sputtering Using Mid-Frequency AC

Wednesday, November 4, 1998, 4:00 pm, Room 310

Session: Advances in Sputtering
Presenter: J. Plaisted, Kinneo
Authors: J. Plaisted, Kinneo
G.W. McDonough, Advanced Energy
G.A. Roche, Advanced Energy
Correspondent: Click to Email
Dual magnetron sputtering (DMS) using mid-frequency AC has become a popular method for the reactive deposition of dielectrics. However, several studies have reported higher levels of substrate bombardment and heating with the use of this technique. In an effort to determine the cause, we separated the effects of plasma ignition from those of the anode arrangement. The anode arrangement employed in mid-frequency DMS was duplicated in DC operation using a pair of opposed magnetrons powered by a floating output generator. Values of the substrate self-bias, ion current, and temperature were compared to those obtained from running the sources with 40 kHz AC and standard DC techniques. Results indicate that a large fraction of the energetic species found in mid-frequency DMS can be explained by a restriction of the anode surfaces to the paired magnetrons.