S. Wouters et al., PLASMA DIAGNOSTICS IN A TRIODE ION PLATING SYSTEM, Journal of vacuum science & technology. A. Vacuum, surfaces, and films, 16(5), 1998, pp. 2816-2826
Citations number
16
Categorie Soggetti
Physics, Applied","Materials Science, Coatings & Films
Langmuir probes combined with an energy resolved mass analyzer make sa
tisfying contributions to the characterization of plasmas. The probes
provide spatially resolved information on the well known plasma parame
ters, while the mass analyzer gives information on the energy distribu
tion functions for ions/neutrals originating from some point in the pl
asma volume. These diagnostic tools have been used to investigate the
glow discharge of the triode ion plating system of Balzers (BAI 640),
a physical vapor deposition installation for the production of hard co
atings. Two identical, planar Langmuir probes, positioned in the main
argon plasma body, and an energy-resolved mass analyzer (Balzers PPM 4
21), directed to the crucible, were used to investigate the influence
of the four most important process parameters, i.e., (1) the low volta
ge (LV) are current, (2) the high voltage (HV) electron gun current, (
3) the total pressure, and (4) the substrate voltage on the plasma par
ameters and on the energy spectra of ions and neutrals, during the eva
poration of titanium without reactive gases. The substrate bias had no
significant influence on the plasma parameters and on the energy spec
tra, but is very important for the microstructure of the thin film. Th
e HV electron gun, used to melt the titanium, changed the plasma param
eters only at high current values, but the energy spectra of the Ti io
ns changed drastically. The LV are current and the total pressure are
the process parameters that do affect both the probe characteristics a
nd the energy spectra of ions and neutrals. (C) 1998 American Vacuum S
ociety. [S0734-2101(98)05305-6].