KDF continues to innovate in the field of reactive sputtering with its specially designed and patented sputter sources and the integration of Plasma Emission Monitoring (PEM).
- Sputter Sources: KDF’s sputter sources, such as the LMM sputter source, are designed for a reactive sputtering process. They reduce the build-up of reacted species on the target surface, decreasing the chances of potential differences building up, causing dreaded arcing and process instability.
- In-situ Monitoring with PEM: KDF integrates PEM into the system with precisely placed optical sensors and easy-to-use software controls. PEM tracks the relative emission intensity of the ionized species in the sputtering plasma and controls the reactive gas to maintain an emission intensity setpoint. This setpoint correlates to the deposition rate and reactive gas concentration in the films, making it a great solution for rapidly developing a reactive sputtering process and repeatably depositing films of similar quality.
KDF is proud to implement PEM to further improve the capability and reliability of our production batch coaters. It is an excellent solution to control and develop a reactive sputtering process. Being fully integrated allows for straightforward recipe development, process monitoring, and parameter recording. We continue to be in line with your process!
Plasma Emission Monitoring (PEM) analyzes the light emission generated by ionized species during a physical vapor deposition (PVD) process. Observing this emission provides real-time insights into the plasma chemical makeup. When reactive gas, such as oxygen or nitrogen, is introduced to a deposition process, the intensity of light emitted by the different species of the sputtering plasma changes. The PEM can then be used as a closed-loop control method to adjust the reactive gas flow to maintain the emission intensity of the species you choose throughout the entire deposition process. This makes a PEM a critical tool for a production batch coating reactive PVD systems for several reasons.
- This allows for straightforward process development, as one parameter can be adjusted to easily explore different compositions of the deposited film.
- The transition zone can be determined in a reactive sputtering process, and the operation in that zone can be maintained to achieve the highest deposition rate possible for the compound film.
- By analyzing the plasma spectra, the PEM can indicate if there is any unwanted gas contamination.
- The emission intensity of certain species is correlated with the deposition rate. This allows predictability in film thickness before the sample is removed from the PVD system.
- After using the PEM to rapidly develop the process, it can be used to repeatably perform the same process to deposit films of similar characteristics.
At KDF, we took our effectively designed production batch-coating reactive sputtering systems and seamlessly integrated PEM. We have precisely placed the optical sensors to optimally view the sputtering plasma from any target in the system. Most importantly, the PEM is highly integrated into the KDF software, making it simple to use and easy to monitor. The KDF recipe builder allows the user to effectively modify the amount of reaction for a deposition process to create a film of a single composition or even deposit films of graded composition. During the deposition process the KDF software will graphically display the PEM information for the user. In the background the KDF software will monitor the control quality of the PEM, and it will quickly abort if there are any issues with trying to maintain a particular emission setpoint. Once the issues are resolved (say the reactive gas bottle was emptied and is now replaced) the KDF software can pick up the process from exactly when it aborted. Furthermore, the KDF software records all the important parameters and PEM information in a deposition process so a user can track operation over time.
Overall, KDF is proud to implement PEM to further improve the capability and reliability of our production batch coaters. It is an excellent solution to control and develop a reactive sputtering process. Being fully integrated allows for straightforward recipe development, process monitoring, and parameter recording. We continue to be in line with your process!
