Atomic layer deposition: state-of-the-art and research/industrial perspectives

Abstract

Interest on nanometric conformal coatings is currently growing across a wide range of applications, from electronic components to corrosion protection, chemical barriers or even wear decrease. Currently, atomic layer deposition (ALD) is one of the most promising nanometric deposition technologies: it offers the possibility to obtain conformal coatings even on very complex tridimensional substrates, with a strict thickness tolerance. During an ALD cycle, only one molecular layer is deposited on the substrate surface, enabling the theoretical possibility to tailor the composition of the deposit up to molecular resolution. In the fi rst part of this review, a brief history of ALD is presented to better understand the evolution of the technique during the past fi ve decades; in the second part, a short description of the main ALD techniques is given, considering their main advantages and drawbacks. In the third part, a short review about ALD applications is presented, and in the fourth part the most useful and used instruments for the analysis and characterization of ALD are listed; some results are discussed and particular emphasis on the corrosion protection of different metallic alloys of common industrial interest is given.

Rechargeable Magnesium–Sulfur Battery Technology: State of the Art and Key Challenges

“…Therefore, to compensate for that, the design of an appropriate conductive and protective artificial interphase on Mg anodes presents a potentially feasible approach . Further on, a physically deposited atomic layer, which is thin and conductive, might also be an attractive approach to protect the metal surface from corrosion by tracers of oxygen or water, sulfur and the electrolyte . Due to the special application in battery technology, the traditional technologies such as chemical vapor deposition and physical vapor deposition were found unsuitable, since these methods did not deliver protective layers with the necessary appropriate thickness and high uniformity .…”

“…Further on, a physically deposited atomic layer, which is thin and conductive, might also be an attractive approach to protect the metal surface from corrosion by tracers of oxygen or water, sulfur and the electrolyte . Due to the special application in battery technology, the traditional technologies such as chemical vapor deposition and physical vapor deposition were found unsuitable, since these methods did not deliver protective layers with the necessary appropriate thickness and high uniformity . Thus, the protective layer should uniformly cover the surface and be a few nanometers thick to maintain high ionic conductivity without increasing cell impedance in the battery .…”

“…Due to the special application in battery technology, the traditional technologies such as chemical vapor deposition and physical vapor deposition were found unsuitable, since these methods did not deliver protective layers with the necessary appropriate thickness and high uniformity . Thus, the protective layer should uniformly cover the surface and be a few nanometers thick to maintain high ionic conductivity without increasing cell impedance in the battery . Therefore, the concept of atomic layer deposition which was first applied in Li batteries using a Al 2 O 3 layer, is currently considered more suitable for Mg anodes …”

Microstructural and in‐depth electrochemical characterization of Zn diffusion layers on aluminum 3xxx alloy

“…Rf-GDOES is widely used to analyze the elemental distribution as a function of the depth of several type of coatings, from nanometric to micrometric size in thickness, as for example: hot dipped coatings, 18 galvanic coatings, 19,20 sol-gel, 21,22 and Physical Vapour Deposition (PVD) 23 and Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) coatings. 24 However, Rf-GDOES has limited lateral resolution because the obtained craters are typically 4 mm in diameter.…”

Investigation of native oxide removing from HCPA ALD grown GaN thin films surface utilizing HF solutions

“…Their properties [1][2][3][4][5] such as wide energy bandgap, high electron saturation velocity, high breakdown fields, high operational temperatures, low thermal generation rates, radiation tolerance and biocompatibility led to many highly successful technologies in the electronic and photonic systems [6] (high power LED's [7], HEMT's [8,9], multijunction solar cells [10,11], future optical and memory devices, FETs, HEMTs and sensors [12], etc. ).…”