Sputtering was first observed and studied in 1852 by William Robert Grove. Grove conducted experiments where he used a tip of wire as the coating source and sputtered a deposit onto a highly polished silver surface at a pressure of about 0.5 Torr. Although Grove was the first to study this phenomenon, it was observed by others before him through the examination of glow discharges.
The process of sputtering involves the ejection of atoms or molecules from a material's surface due to bombardment by high-energy particles. This technique remained a scientific curiosity until the 1940s when it began to be used commercially as a coating process, particularly with diode sputtering. However, diode sputtering had limitations such as low deposition rates and high costs. These issues led to the development of magnetron sputtering in the mid-1970s, a magnetically enhanced variant that improved upon the earlier methods.
Sputtering has evolved significantly since its initial observation in the 1850s. It has become a mature approach for depositing various thin film materials and has found applications ranging from reflective coatings for mirrors and packaging materials to advanced semiconductor devices. The technology has continued to advance, with over 45,000 U.S. patents issued since 1976 related to sputtering, highlighting its importance in materials science and technology.
In summary, the invention of sputtering can be traced back to 1852 when William Robert Grove first studied and demonstrated the process. Since then, it has undergone significant development and is now a widely used technique in various industries due to its versatility and the advancements in sputtering technology.
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