Reactor device with removable deposition monitor

Abstract

A reactor apparatus includes a first chamber coupled to a first source of vacuum, a monitor chamber isolated from the first chamber and coupled to a second source of vacuum, and at least one removable deposition monitor disposed in the monitor chamber.

Description

RELATED APPLICATIONS[0001]This application is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 11 / 293,346 filed on Dec. 2, 2005. Priority is claimed pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §120. The above-noted application is incorporated by reference as if set forth fully herein.FIELD OF THE INVENTION[0002]The field of the invention generally relates to devices and methods used to produce thin films on a substrate. More specifically, the field of the invention relates to devices and methods used to form high-temperature superconducting (HTS) films in-situ.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0003]Since the discovery in the mid 1980s of the perovskite family of HTS materials, extensive strides have been made in the ability to deposit high quality HTS films. Thin films formed from HTS materials are highly desirable for a variety of superconductive electronics applications including, for example, detectors, digital circuits, and passive microwave devices (e.g., HTS-based filters).[0004]Over the years, several techni...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

"The invention is a reactor apparatus that increases the throughput of multi-component HTS films deposited on substrates using reactive coevaporation. It separates various aspects of the deposition process into interlinked but separate chambers, which can be pumped independently of each other. This reduces the overall pump down time of the device when vacuum conditions are broken in one of the separate chambers. The technical effects of the invention include increased throughput and improved efficiency of the deposition process."

Problems solved by technology

Nonetheless, thin film growth of these materials has still been difficult.

Growth of HTS materials is further complicated by the fact that these compounds typically comprise at least three metallic species which are in oxide form.

Furthermore, in-situ growth of these materials requires them to be oxygenated as they are grown, which is generally not compatible with many conventional techniques such as physical vapor deposition.

There are, however, serious limitations to these methods including slow growth rate (sputtering), difficulty in controlling composition, poor reproducibility, poor film uniformity (sputtering, MOCVD), difficulty of achieving large-area deposition (PLD), and difficulty of scalability (all aforementioned techniques).

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