| AVS 56th International Symposium & Exhibition | |
| Thin Film | Monday Sessions |
| Session TF2-MoA |
| Session: | Thin Films: Growth and Characterization II |
| Presenter: | P. Fuqua, The Aerospace Corporation |
| Authors: | J.D. Barrie, The Aerospace Corporation C.T. Chu, The Aerospace Corporation P.D. Chaffee, The Aerospace Corporation C.J. Panetta, The Aerospace Corporation K.A. Folgner, The Aerospace Corporation P. Fuqua, The Aerospace Corporation |
| Correspondent: | Click to Email |
The high reflectivity of silver coatings in the visible and infrared makes them the mirror of choice for many demanding applications. Unfortunately, these mirrors tend to be affected by exposure to atmospheric contaminants, resulting in corrosion that reduces reflectivity and increases scatter, limiting the mirrors’ useful service life. Factors that can affect the stability of silver mirrors include interface adhesion, impurities and pinholes in the dielectric protection layers, and the microstructure and stress levels in the films. This paper examines the preparation of silver mirrors by plasma beam deposition, a relatively new technique for thin film fabrication developed and patented by Plasma Quest, Ltd., and licensed by The Aerospace Corporation. In this method, a high-density inductively-coupled RF-plasma is created external to the deposition chamber, is electromagnetically steered towards a source target, and finally is accelerated towards the target by application of a bias on the target. The separation of plasma generation and transport offers significant advantages in process control. We will present data on how varied deposition conditions, such as plasma beam density and target bias, affect stress and durability of high reflectivity silver mirrors.