Manipulating Sputtered Materials During Growth in Pulsed DC Magnetron Discharges
Abstract
Time-averaged ion energy distributions and time-resolved floating potentials were measured for a range of duty cycles at electrodes immersed in a 60 kHz pulsed magnetron discharge. The time-averaged ion energy distributions respond to the voltage on the cathode during pulsing, and correlation of the data reveal the time-resolved ion energy distributions at surfaces in the discharge. From the measured data, time-resolved electron temperatures for both pulsed and DC discharges were calculated at times relative to pulse events, and found to be approximately constant at 3 eV. Electrically conductive titanium oxide (TiO) thin films were deposited in the characterized discharges. The structure and properties of the deposited films were measured using conventional techniques. Increased crystallographic texture, hardness, electrical conductivity and packing density were all observed as the incident ion energy was increased by manipulating the discharge pulse parameters.
- Publication:
-
APS Annual Gaseous Electronics Meeting Abstracts
- Pub Date:
- October 2002
- Bibcode:
- 2002APS..GECQWP046M