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In magnetron sputtering, only a fraction of the sputtered target material leaving the ionization region is directed toward the substrate. This fraction may be different for ions and neutrals of the target material as the neutrals and ions can exhibit a different spread as they travel from the target surface toward the substrate. This difference can be significant in high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) where a substantial fraction of the sputtered material is known to be ionized. Geometrical factors or transport parameters that account for the loss of produced film-forming species to the chamber walls are needed for experimental characterization and modeling of the magnetron sputtering discharge. Here, we experimentally determine transport parameters for ions and neutral atoms in a HiPIMS discharge with a titanium target for various magnet configurations. Transport parameters are determined to a typical substrate, with the same diameter (100 mm) as the cathode target, and located at a distance 70 mm from the target surface. As the magnet configuration and/or the discharge current are changed, the transport parameter for neutral atoms ξ tn remains roughly the same, while transport parameters for ions ξ ti vary greatly. Furthermore, the relative ion-to-neutral transport factors, ξ ti / ξ tn , that describe the relative deposited fractions of target material ions and neutrals onto the substrate, are determined to be in the range from 0.4 to 1.1. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A reactive high-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) process using a titanium target in a mixture of Ar/O2 has been investigated for different modes of operation including pure argon, metallic, transition, and compound mode. The trends and changes in the plasma density ne and the effective electron temperature Teff, have been measured by the time-resolved Langmuir probe technique. The same experimental process conditions have also been studied using a recently developed reactive ionization region model (R-IRM), making it possible to compare the acquired experimental results with the model results. It was found that trends in the plasma density and mean electron energy as measured by the Langmuir probe are in good agreement with the results obtained from the R-IRM model for different pulse discharge current densities. The effective electron temperature generally increases with an increasing oxygen flow rate. It is likely due to a reduction of sputtered Ti, due to compound formation on the target, which forces the discharge to increase the electron energy to increase the ionization rate of the process gas (Ar/O2) to maintain a high HiPIMS discharge current. Small variations in the plasma density were detected between the middle part of the plasma pulse as compared to the end of the plasma pulse, when transitioning from the metal mode to the poisoned mode. It is found that the time-evolution of the electron density is rather well correlated with the discharge current waveform. On the other hand, the mean electron energy did not change significantly between the middle and the end of the plasma pulse. For the lower pulse discharge current, both the model and experimental data have shown a slight increase in the plasma density with increasing O2 mass flow rate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The oxygen dynamics in a reactive Ar/O2 high power impulse magnetron sputtering discharge has been studied using a new reactive ionization region model. The aim has been to identify the dominating physical and chemical reactions in the plasma and on the surfaces of the reactor affecting the oxygen plasma chemistry. We explore the temporal evolution of the density of the ground state oxygen molecule O2(Xµ ∑-g, the singlet metastable oxygen molecules O2 (aµΔg) and O2(bµ ∑-g, the oxygen atom in the ground state O(³P), the metastable oxygen atom O(¹D), the positive ions O+2 and O+, and the negative ion O-. We furthermore investigate the reaction rates for the gain and loss of these species. The density of atomic oxygen increases significantly as we move from the metal mode to the transition mode, and finally into the compound (poisoned) mode. The main gain rate responsible for the increase is sputtering of atomic oxygen from the oxidized target. Both in the poisoned mode and in the transition mode, sputtering makes up more than 80% of the total gain rate for atomic oxygen. We also investigate the possibility of depositing stoichiometric TiO2 in the transition mode. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The magnetic field is a key feature that distinguishes magnetron sputtering from simple diode sputtering. It effectively increases the residence time of electrons close to the cathode surface and by that increases the energy efficiency of the discharge. This becomes apparent in high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) discharges, as small changes in the magnetic field can result in large variations in the discharge characteristics, notably the peak discharge current and/or the discharge voltage during a pulse. Here, we analyze the influence of the magnetic field on the electron density and temperature, how the discharge voltage is split between the cathode sheath and the ionization region, and the electron heating mechanism in a HiPIMS discharge. We relate the results to the energy efficiency of the discharge and discuss them in terms of the probability of target species ionization. The energy efficiency of the discharge is related to the fraction of pulse power absorbed by the electrons. Ohmic heating of electrons in the ionization region leads to higher energy efficiency than electron energization in the sheath. We find that the electron density and ionization probability of the sputtered species depend largely on the discharge current. The results suggest ways to adjust electron density and electron temperature using the discharge current and the magnetic field, respectively, and how they influence the ionization probability. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the effect of high power pulses in reactive magnetron sputter epitaxy on the structural properties of GaN (0001) thin films grown directly on Al2O3 (0001) substrates. The epilayers are grown by sputtering from a liquid Ga target, using a high power impulse magnetron sputtering power supply in a mixed N2/Ar discharge. X-ray diffraction, micro-Raman, micro-photoluminescence, and transmission electron microscopy investigations show the formation of two distinct types of domains. One almost fully relaxed domain exhibits superior structural and optical properties as evidenced by rocking curves with a full width at half maximum of 885 arc sec and a low temperature band edge luminescence at 3.47 eV with the full width at half maximum of 10 meV. The other domain exhibits a 14 times higher isotropic strain component, which is due to the higher densities of the point and extended defects, resulting from the ion bombardment during growth. Voids form at the domain boundaries. Mechanisms for the formation of differently strained domains, along with voids during the epitaxial growth of GaN are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The temporal variation of the electron energy distribution function (EEDF) is measured with a Langmuir probe in a high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) discharge. The measured EEDF is Maxwellian-like during the pulse and it has indicated that the plasma has cooled as the pulse has progressed due to high metal content of the discharge.