Dynamic of the growth flux at the substrate during high-power pulsed magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) of titanium

Breilmann, Wolfgang; Maszl, Christian; Benedikt, Jan; Keudell, Achim von

doi:10.1088/0022-3727/46/48/485204

Cited by 35 publications

(46 citation statements)

References 30 publications

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“…All ions see this identical potential difference and are accelerated towards the chamber walls and the substrate. This effect has be discussed in detail in [26].…”

Section: Iedfs At 35 Kw/cmmentioning

confidence: 90%

“…All measured signals are proportional to the mass/charge ratio and the energy/charge ratio, respectively. A more detailed description of the setup is given elsewhere [26]. Simultaneously with the EQP measurements, the optical emission of the plasma is monitored by an intensified CCD camera (ICCD).…”

Section: Plasma Diagnosticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The ions in the afterglow are slightly more energetic (V). These are ions being de-trapped from the racetrack [26].…”

Section: Ion Energy Distributionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Origin of the energetic ions at the substrate generated during high power pulsed magnetron sputtering of titanium

Maszl

Breilmann

Benedikt

et al. 2014

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

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Abstract. High power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) plasmas generate energetic metal ions at the substrate as a major difference to conventional direct current magnetron sputtering (dcMS). The origin of these very energetic ions in HiPIMS is still an open issue, which is unraveled by using two fast diagnostics: time resolved mass spectrometry with a temporal resolution of 2 µs and phase resolved optical emission spectroscopy with a temporal resolution of 1 µs. A power scan from dcMS-like to HiPIMS plasmas was performed, with a 2-inch magnetron and a titanium target as sputter source and argon as working gas. Clear differences in the transport as well in the energetic properties of Ar + , Ar 2+ , Ti + and Ti 2+ were observed. For discharges with highest peak power densities a high energetic group of Ti + and Ti 2+ could be identified with energies of approximately 25 eV and of 50 eV, respectively. A cold group of ions is always present. It is found that hot ions are observed only, when the plasma enters the spokes regime, which can be monitored by oscillations in the IV-characteristics in the MHz range that are picked up by the used VI-probes. These oscillations are correlated with the spokes phenomenon and are explained as an amplification of the Hall current inside the spokes as hot ionization zones. To explain the presence of energetic ions, we propose a double layer (DL) confining the hot plasma inside a spoke: if an atom becomes ionized inside the spokes region it is accelerated because of the DL to higher energies whereas its energy remains unchanged if it is ionized outside. In applying this DL model to our measurements the observed phenomena as well as several measurements from other groups can be explained. Only if spokes and a double layer are present the confined particles can gain enough energy to leave the magnetic trap. We conclude from our findings that the spoke phenomenon represents the essence of HiPIMS plasmas, explaining their good performance for material synthesis applications. ‡

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“…All ions see this identical potential difference and are accelerated towards the chamber walls and the substrate. This effect has be discussed in detail in [26].…”

Section: Iedfs At 35 Kw/cmmentioning

confidence: 90%

Section: Plasma Diagnosticsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Origin of the energetic ions at the substrate generated during high power pulsed magnetron sputtering of titanium

Maszl

Breilmann

Benedikt

et al. 2014

J. Phys. D: Appl. Phys.

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“…Apart from this, no overshoots after the pulse-off were generated. More details to plasma instabilities during HPPMS deposition are discussed by, for example, Sarakinos et al [13], Maszl et al [26], or Breilmann et al [27]. Subsequent to this instable phase, the discharge at a pulse-frequency of 200-500 Hz passes into a plateau phase where self-sputtering processes sustain the discharge for a few s. This constant current density (plateau phase) occurs when a significant fraction of ions with high potential energy generates fast secondary electrons which can sustain the impact ionization [17].…”

Section: Advances In Materials Science and Engineeringmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effect of HPPMS Pulse-Frequency on Plasma Discharge and Deposited AlTiN Coating Properties

Severin

Naveed

Weiß

2017

Advances in Materials Science and Engineering

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Coatings like TiAlN (titanium content more than 50%) or AlTiN (aluminium content more than 50%) are well established as hard and wear-resistant tool coatings, often prepared by physical vapour deposition (PVD) like arc evaporation or direct current magnetron sputtering (dcMS). With increasing challenges of operating conditions, there is a constant need for improvement of mechanical properties to withstand extreme loading conditions. This can be obtained by a higher amount of ionized sputtered metal atoms during the deposition process. To increase the metal ion flux a high-power pulse magnetron sputtering (HPPMS) was developed. In order to understand the relation between HPPMS process parameters and mechanical properties of the AlTiN coatings, the present study discusses how different pulse-frequencies (for a constant pulse length) influence AlTiN coating structure growth and their mechanical properties. In addition, film deposition rate and phase formation are influenced by altering process parameters like pulse length and frequency. Hence, different pulse-frequencies produce specific coatings with corresponding properties for functional requirements. Based on the established findings, answers to new scientific queries along with the demand to further optimize these coatings for tool applications are required.

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“…The number of spokes decreases with increasing current and increases with pressure in the system [3][4][5][6]; (iii) the appearance of spokes coincides with the observation of an energetic group of ions of typically few tens of eV in the growth flux on the substrate. The hypothesis holds that their creation occurs inside the spokes, which are believed to be regions of higher electrical potential [7][8][9]; (iv) the confinement in HiPIMS plasmas is much smaller compared to conventional dc-magnetron plasmas as can be judged from the ratio between the Hall current along the plasma torus and the discharge current towards the target. This effect is most likely associated to internal electrical fields leading to anomalous cross B-field transport [10]; (v) the spoke pattern undergoes a complex transition from a homogeneous plasma torus at low currents, to a spoke regime at intermediate currents, to a homogeneous plasma torus again at very high currents [11].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Control of High Power Pulsed Magnetron Discharge by Monitoring the Current Voltage Characteristics

Keudell

Hecimovic

Maszl

2016

Contrib. Plasma Phys.

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Key words High power pulsed magentron sputtering, plasma control.Discharge current voltage (IV) curves are directly measured at the target of a high impulse power magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) plasma for the target materials aluminium, chromium, titanium and copper. These discharge IV curves have been correlated with ICCD camera images of the plasma torus. A clear connection between the change in the discharge IV curve slopes at specific currents and the appearance of localized ionization zones, so-called spokes, in a HiPIMS plasma is identified. These spokes appear above typical target current densities of 2 A/cm 2 . The slope of the discharge IV curves, at current densities when spokes are formed, depends on the mass of the target atoms with a higher plasma conductivity for higher mass target materials. This is explained by the momentum transfer from the sputter wind to the argon background gas, which leads to higher plasma densities for heavier target materials. The change in the VI curve slope can be used to identify the spokes regime for HiPIMS plasmas, as being mandatory for deposition of good quality materials by HiPIMS. Consequently, the discharge IV curve slope monitoring can be regarded an essential control approach of any industrial HiPIMS process, where discharge IV curves are much easier accessible compared to more complex diagnostics such as time and space resolved ICCD camera measurements.

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Dynamic of the growth flux at the substrate during high-power pulsed magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) of titanium

Cited by 35 publications

References 30 publications

Origin of the energetic ions at the substrate generated during high power pulsed magnetron sputtering of titanium

Origin of the energetic ions at the substrate generated during high power pulsed magnetron sputtering of titanium

Effect of HPPMS Pulse-Frequency on Plasma Discharge and Deposited AlTiN Coating Properties

Control of High Power Pulsed Magnetron Discharge by Monitoring the Current Voltage Characteristics

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