AVS 52nd International Symposium
    Thin Films Monday Sessions
       Session TF-MoP

Paper TF-MoP36
Reactive Pulsed DC Magnetron Sputtering of Oxide Films

Monday, October 31, 2005, 5:00 pm, Room Exhibit Hall C&D

Session: Aspects of Thin Films Poster Session
Presenter: M. Ye, Applied Materials, Inc.
Correspondent: Click to Email

Reactive pulsed DC magnetron sputtering extends the capabilities of DC sputtering to the area of insulating thin films deposition. The occurrence of arcing can be avoided and the plasma can be stabilized by periodically discharging the poisoned regions of the target through target voltage reversals. By careful design of hardware and selection of appropriate operating conditions, successful processing of various oxide films (aluminum oxide, tantalum oxide, and titanium oxide, etc.) on Applied Materials 200mm Endura platform is demonstrated in this paper. The experimentally established hysteresis curves are compared with modeling analysis. Film characterization results, including deposition rate, film stress, composition, optical index of refraction, density, and roughness, are presented. The effects of oxygen flow rate are studied. It is shown that amorphous films with low stress level, good adhesion, smooth surface and the right stoichiometry can be achieved. Oxide films have been used in a variety of applications, including semiconductor devices, optical films, and MEMS devices. Compared to other deposition methods, DC magnetron reactive sputtering proves to be a simple yet powerful and efficient way of depositing insulating thin films, in both manufacturing environment and R&D applications.