A Remote Plasma Sputter Process for High Rate Web Coating of Low Temperature Plastic Film with High Quality Thin Film Metals and Insulators

Presented by Dr. Peter Hockley and Prof. Mike Thwaites, Plasma Quest Limited

Remote high-density plasma generation sputter deposition technology can overcome several of the limitations inherent in other thin film deposition techniques. The benefits include the ability to sputter thick ferromagnetic materials, high rate and stable reactive sputtering for deposition of
dielectrics, deposition of low stress films with properties approaching bulk, and maintenance of stoichiometry from compound targets. We have now developed this technology to operate with a 50cm x 7.5cm diameter cylindrical sputter target to provide a source for high rate, large area thin film deposition especially suited to web coating applications for flexible electronics. In addition to metal and ferromagnetic thin films, high rate stable deposition of alumina and other oxides has been demonstrated by sputtering from the metallic precursor targets in an oxygen ambient. All materials have been deposited with near zero stress and with excellent adhesion onto a range of low temperature substrates, including thin polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic sheet.