Why KDF
When Your Substrates
Can't Afford a Second Try
Medical implants. Compound semiconductors. Photonics. Precision defense components. The industries that trust KDF are defined by substrate cost, process sensitivity, and zero tolerance for failure. We engineer for that reality.
Core Capabilities
Built for the Hardest
Thin Film Problems
Every KDF system is engineered around a simple premise: your substrate is valuable, your process tolerances are tight, and your production schedule cannot absorb rework. These are the capabilities that make that possible.
Sub-1% Film Uniformity
KDF's proprietary ERPP™ (Enhanced Rotating Planetary Pallet) achieves exceptionally tight uniformity — independently validated to sub-1% — critical for dielectric stacks, TCO films, and multilayer PVD processes where thickness variation directly impacts device yield.
ERPP™ + Linear Scanning + Velocity ProfilingSubstrate-Safe Processing
Sensitive substrates — biocompatible implant components, fragile III-V wafers, temperature-limited assemblies — require precise thermal management. KDF systems feature water-cooled chambers, shields and cathodes, and integrated IR pyrometer pallet temperature measurement with recipe-controlled hold steps.
IR Temp Monitoring · Water CoolingPrecious Metal Deposition
KDF's Upsilon Inset™ cathode is purpose-engineered for high thermal conductivity, high-value target materials — Gold, Platinum, Palladium, Silver — used extensively in medical contacts, hermetic feedthroughs, and biocompatible device surfaces. The LMM™ magnetron's full-face erosion maximizes target utilization, minimizing waste on materials that cost more than the system run.
Upsilon Inset™ Cathode · LMM™HIPIMS for Dense, Hard Films
High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering produces highly dense, smooth, and adherent films with superior conformality for high-aspect-ratio geometries. Essential for wear coatings, barrier layers, and applications where standard DC magnetron sputtering cannot achieve the required film density or step coverage.
HIPIMS · Pulsed DCReactive Process Control
KDF's Plasma Emission Monitoring (PEM) actively controls reactive gas flow in real time, maintaining deposition rate and film stoichiometry run-to-run. Optimally designed gas rings and precision MFCs positioned close to injection ports eliminate transients that destroy batch-to-batch repeatability in reactive nitride and oxide processes.
PEM · Pulsed DC · RF ReactiveRun-to-Run Process Stability
Auto Rate Adjust (ARA) automatically compensates scan speed or deposition power as a target wears — maintaining a stable, calibrated process from first run to end-of-target-life. Combined with scan velocity profiling and PEM, your process doesn't drift; it holds.
ARA · Scan Velocity Control · PEM3D and Complex Part Loading
Parts up to 4 inches in thickness can be loaded into tall horizontal 900-series systems. Pallets accommodate total loaded weights up to 150 lbs — supporting production of assembled sub-components, pacemaker housings, hermetic feedthroughs, and other non-planar geometries without fixturing compromises that affect film quality.
900 Series · Horizontal Loading · 150 lb CapacityIn-House Process Development
KDF's R&D team brings deep expertise in thin film engineering, device physics, and process integration. Our in-house metrology center, fully functional PVD tools for development, and tool SEM mean you're not figuring out a novel reactive nitride or new dielectric stack alone in production. Customer-oriented R&D is a core KDF capability, not a sales pitch.
Metrology Center · Tool SEM · Applications EngineeringMarkets We Serve
Applications That Demand
This Level of Precision
KDF systems are installed globally across the industries where thin film failure is not an option.
Medical Devices
Pacemakers, cochlear implants, ICDs, neurostimulators — hermetic sealing & biocompatible films
Compound Semiconductors
III-V wafers, GaN, InP — hundreds of KDF systems installed globally in this sector
Photonics & Quantum
Laser diodes, optical components, quantum devices — ITO, AlN, ultra-uniform dielectric films
Integrated Passive Devices
IPDs, thin film circuits, resistors — demanding uniformity and tight process control
Sensors & Monitoring
MEMS sensors, pressure transducers, environmental monitors — stable, calibrated thin films
Defense & Aerospace
NASA, Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman — MIL-spec processes, documented and repeatable
Process Depth
Every Sputtering Mode.
Every Material Class.
KDF systems are configured for any combination of sputtering mode, substrate geometry, and material — so as your process evolves, your platform doesn't become a constraint.
Sputtering Modes
- DC Magnetron Sputtering
- RF Sputtering (in-house tuned matching networks)
- Pulsed DC Sputtering
- Reactive Sputtering (with PEM feedback control)
- HIPIMS (High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering)
Material Capabilities
- Precious metals: Au, Pt, Pd, Ag
- Refractory metals: Ti, TiW, Ta, Zr, Ir, Al
- Nitrides: TiN, TaN, AlN, Si₃N₄
- Oxides: SiO₂, Al₂O₃, ITO, Al-doped ZnO
- Dielectrics at high metallic deposition rates
System Geometries
- Side sputtering — 600i, 744i, 844i series
- Down sputtering — 900i, 974i series
- Deposition areas from 12×12" to 26×30"
- 3D parts up to 4" substrate thickness
- High-vacuum loadlock + pre-heat option
Process Control Options
- Plasma Emission Monitoring (PEM)
- Auto Rate Adjust (ARA) — target wear compensation
- Scan velocity profiling
- IR pyrometer pallet temperature measurement
- iSeries Rockwell Automation PLC
Trusted By Industry Leaders
And hundreds of medical device, photonics, and compound semiconductor manufacturers worldwide
Common Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
Let's Talk About Your Process
Tell us your substrate, your film stack, and your throughput requirements. We'll tell you exactly how KDF can solve it.
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