To make plasma in sputtering, the following steps are involved:
1. The sputtering process starts with a vacuum chamber containing the target material, substrate, and RF electrodes.
2. A sputtering gas, typically an inert gas like argon or xenon, is directed into the chamber. These gases are chosen because they do not react with the target material or other process gases.
3. High voltage is applied between the cathode, which is located directly behind the sputtering target, and the anode, which is connected to the chamber as electrical ground.
4. Electrons present in the sputtering gas are accelerated away from the cathode, causing collisions with nearby atoms of the sputtering gas.
5. These collisions result in an electrostatic repulsion that knocks off electrons from the sputtering gas atoms, causing ionization.
6. The positive sputtering gas ions are then accelerated towards the negatively charged cathode, leading to high energy collisions with the surface of the target.
7. Each collision can cause atoms at the surface of the target to be ejected into the vacuum environment with enough kinetic energy to reach the surface of the substrate.
8. The ejected target atoms travel and deposit on the substrate as a film, forming the desired coating.
9. To increase the deposition rates, high molecular weight gases like argon or xenon are typically chosen as the sputtering gas. If a reactive sputtering process is desired, gases like oxygen or nitrogen can be introduced to the chamber during film growth.
10. The plasma is created at relatively high pressures (10-1 to 10-3 mbar). It is important to start from a lower pressure before the introduction of argon to avoid contamination due to residual gases.
11. The shape and material of the sputtering target can be varied to create different types of thin layers and alloys during a single run.
In summary, plasma in sputtering is created by ionizing a sputtering gas, typically an inert gas like argon, through collisions with high-energy electrons. These ions then bombard the target material, causing atoms to be ejected and deposited onto the substrate as a thin film.
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