SIMULATION OF THE DEPOSITION PROCESS IN PVD-TECHNOLOGY

The PVD-technology and here the magnetron sputter ion plating technolo gy (MSIP) has been applied in various modem technological fields owing to the wide range of possible coating materials. Besides electronic, optical and decorative applications, hard and protective PVD-films, in particular, have been widely applied as coatings which play an import ant role for the resistance against wear and corrosion. Such coatings have already been developed or are in industrial use. Although individ ual effects and phenomena that are brought along with the development of the PVD process, have been known for a long time, the theoretical d escription of this process is not completely matured, Up to now the de velopment of thin films and the optimization of process parameters is still depending mainly on empiricism and experiments. In the MSIP proc ess many random interactions of particles occur simultaneously. Theref ore it is impossible or difficult to describe the process by some simp le formulas. But with the tool of computer simulations it is possible to investigate the relations between the properties of the film and th e process parameters. The present paper describes the activities of th e Materials Science Institute on computer simulation of the PVD MSIP p rocess.