Coating system and method for semiconductor equipment components

Abstract

An apparatus for coating a component. The apparatus includes a chamber. A first magnetron and a second magnetron are disposed within the chamber for supplying a coating material to a surface of the component. A component holder is disposed within the chamber and configured to hold a component. The first and second magnetrons are configured to be positioned and oriented adjacent a surface of the component held by the component holder, and the first and second magnetrons are configured to move relative to the component holder, or the component holder is configured to move relative to the first and second magnetrons during coating of the component.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to applying coatings on semiconductor equipment such as liners, shutters, doors, dielectric windows and electrostatic chucks. In particular, the present invention provides methods and apparatus for uniformly applying protective coatings on surfaces of semiconductor equipment components exposed to plasma to help protect the equipment from wear and chemical attack. Background Art

[0002] Semiconductor equipment used to produce semiconductor devices is subject to severe wear and chemical attack due to its repeated exposure to plasma during manufacturing (especially in the case of plasma etching). Etching, clamping and unclamping of these components can lead to wear and accumulation of particles (i.e., debris) on the surface of the wafer to be processed. The accumulation of particles can contaminate the wafer and cause the wafer to be discarded or reprocessed.

[0003] Chemical attack on semiconductor equipment is typically caused by highly reactive fluorine or chlorine chemicals. The attack of these chemicals is particularly exacerbated during plasma discharge. In some applications, protection against fluorine is achieved by coating the components with a Y2O3 or YOF layer using thermal spray or aerosol spray methods. These coatings typically have a thickness of about 100 μm. However, due to the porous nature of these coatings, it is usually necessary to make the coating thicker to protect the underlying components.

[0004] Mechanical wear is typically observed during repeated processing of a wafer on an electrostatic chuck. Points of ceramic material, so-called mesas, generally experience wear during repeated processing. Electrostatic chucks are expensive components, and refurbishing worn mesas is highly desirable.

[0005] It is desirable to have a method and apparatus for applying an etch resistant protective layer or a hard wear resistant ceramic layer to a semiconductor equipment component using a physical vapor deposition (PVD) coating technique. Summary of the invention

[0006] An apparatus for coating a component is provided. The apparatus includes a chamber. A first magnetron and a second magnetron are disposed in the chamber for supplying a coating material to a surface of the component. A component holder is disposed in the chamber and is configured to hold the component. The first magnetron and the second magnetron are configured to be positioned and oriented adjacent to a surface of a component held by the component holder, and the first magnetron and the second magnetron are configured to move relative to the component holder, or the component holder is configured to move relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron during coating of the component.

[0007] In the aforementioned apparatus, the orientations of the first magnetron and the second magnetron relative to the surface of the component held by the component holder are configured to be changeable relative to the component holder.

[0008] In the aforementioned apparatus, the movement of the first and second magnetrons relative to the component holder can be achieved in that the component holder is configured in a fixed position and the first and second magnetrons are configured to move during coating of the component. The fixed position of the component holder preferably excludes translational movement relative to the chamber as well as rotational movement.

[0009] The movement of the first and second magnetrons relative to the component holder may be used to improve the coating thickness distribution on the surface of the component. In particular, it may be used to allow coating of the surface of the component where it would otherwise be difficult to obtain a uniform coating thickness distribution.

[0010] To improve process efficiency, movement of the first and second magnetrons relative to the component holder may be performed while the magnetrons are operating.

[0011] In the aforementioned apparatus, the component is an electrostatic chuck or a window and forms at least part of a coating chamber wall, preferably a chamber wall.

[0012] In the foregoing apparatus, the first and second magnetrons are preferably operated with a power supply that delivers bipolar pulses.

[0013] In the aforementioned apparatus, the component may be, for example, a liner, an electrostatic chuck, or a window.

[0014] The foregoing apparatus may further include a third magnetron and a fourth magnetron, wherein the component is a liner, and the first and second magnetrons are configured to be disposed adjacent to an inner surface of the liner, and the third and fourth magnetrons are configured to be disposed adjacent to an outer surface of the liner.

[0015] In the aforementioned apparatus, the first magnetron and the second magnetron deposit, for example, a film containing or being Al2O3, AlN, AlOF, AlON, Y2O3, YAG, YOF, YF3, Er2O3 or ErOF or a combination thereof on a component by using a metal target (e.g., Al, Y, AlY, Er, etc.) or a compound target (e.g., Al2O3, AlN, Y2O3, YF3, Er2O3, etc.) to form a film by supplying an appropriate reaction gas mixture (e.g., N2, O2, O2+N2, CF4, CF4+O2, etc.). However, it is also possible to deposit oxides, nitrides, fluorides, carbides and / or carbon-based coatings, such as DLC or doped DLC. In addition, multi-compound ceramic alloys (having more than 1, 2, 3 or even more metal elements, also referred to as high entropy alloys) can be deposited.

[0016] In the foregoing apparatus, the component holder may be a rotating assembly.

[0017] In the aforementioned apparatus, the component holder may extend through a wall of the chamber.

[0018] In the aforementioned apparatus, the component holder may be a wall of the chamber.

[0019] In the aforementioned apparatus, the first magnetron and the second magnetron may be configured to rotate relative to the component holder, or the component holder may be configured to rotate relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron during coating of the component.

[0020] A method for coating a component is also provided. The method includes positioning a component holder in a coating chamber, the component holder configured to hold the component, positioning and orienting a first magnetron and a second magnetron within the coating chamber adjacent to a surface of the component held by the component holder, and moving the component holder relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron, or moving the first magnetron and the second magnetron relative to the component holder, while sputtering material from the first magnetron and the second magnetron to the component.

[0021] In the aforementioned method, the step of moving the component holder relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron or moving the first magnetron and the second magnetron relative to the component holder may include changing the orientation of the first magnetron and the second magnetron relative to the surface of the component held by the component holder when the component holder moves relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron or the first magnetron and the second magnetron move relative to the component holder.

[0022] In the foregoing method, the step of moving the first and second magnetrons relative to the component holder may include holding the component holder in a fixed position as the first and second magnetrons move relative to the component holder. The fixed position of the component holder preferably excludes translational movement and rotational movement relative to the chamber.

[0023] In the foregoing method, the step of moving the component holder relative to the first and second magnetrons or moving the first and second magnetrons relative to the component holder may comprise depositing a film on the component comprising or being Al2O3, AlN, AlOF, AlON, Y2O3, YOF or YF3, Er2O3, ErOF, DLC or doped DLC or a combination thereof. However, it is also possible to deposit oxides, nitrides, fluorides, carbides and / or carbon-based coatings. In addition, multi-compound ceramic alloys (having more than 1, 2, 3 or even more metal elements, also known as high entropy alloys) may be deposited.

[0024] In the foregoing method, the first magnetron and the second magnetron have a power supply that delivers bipolar pulses.

[0025] The foregoing method may further include depositing with a third magnetron and a fourth magnetron, wherein the component is a liner, and the first and second magnetrons are disposed adjacent an inner surface of the liner, and the third and fourth magnetrons are disposed adjacent an outer surface of the liner.

[0026] In the foregoing method, the component holder may be a rotating assembly.

[0027] In the foregoing method, the component holder may extend through a wall of the coating chamber.

[0028] In the aforementioned method, the component holder may be a wall of the coating chamber. In particular, the component holder may be part of the wall that seals the interior of the coating chamber from the environment. The component holder may also serve as part of a vacuum seal.

[0029] The arrangement of the component holder as part of the coating chamber has at least the advantage that the component holder can be equipped with a cooling circuit from the ambient side without requiring a special feedthrough. A further advantage is that the component holder can be connected to the RF power supply from the ambient side in a simple and technically feasible manner.

[0030] In the aforementioned method, the step of moving the component holder relative to the first and second magnetrons or moving the first and second magnetrons relative to the component holder may include rotating the component holder relative to the first and second magnetrons or rotating the first and second magnetrons relative to the component holder. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0031] Figure 1 An open coating chamber with a pair of movable magnetrons is shown according to one embodiment of the present invention;

[0032] Figure 2 Shows positioning and orientation into the coated liner Figure 1 Pairs of magnetrons;

[0033] Figure 3a is Figure 2 a cross-sectional perspective view of a liner of , illustrating a coating on the liner;

[0034] FIG3 b is a graph of the thickness of the coating of FIG3 a along the liner;

[0035] FIG4a is a cross-sectional perspective view showing a pair of magnetrons (indicated by elliptical dashed lines) positioned adjacent two liners;

[0036] FIG4b is a cross-sectional side view of the paired magnetrons and two liners of FIG4a;

[0037] Figure 5is a cross-sectional side view of a coating assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention, illustrating an electrostatic chuck and a pair of magnetrons disposed within a chamber;

[0038] FIG6a is a cross-sectional side view of the coating assembly showing the paired magnetrons inside the liner;

[0039] FIG6 b is a cross-sectional perspective view of the coating assembly of FIG6 a ;

[0040] Figure 7 is a perspective view of a coating assembly according to another embodiment of the present invention showing a first pair of magnetrons and a second pair of magnetrons positioned adjacent a liner;

[0041] FIG8a is a cross-sectional side view of the liner illustrating the positioning of cooling contacts on the liner; and

[0042] 8b is a cross-sectional side view illustrating the temperature distribution of the liner of FIG. 8a. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0043] refer to Figure 1 , illustrating an exemplary coating assembly 10 according to a first embodiment. The coating assembly 10 includes a chamber 12 configured to receive a component to be coated, such as a liner 22 ( Figure 2 ), the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B. A controller 50 is provided to control the operation of the coating assembly 10. The controller 50 ensures that the operating point of the reactive sputtering process is stable in terms of sputtering target poisoning and stoichiometry. The power supply 16 is positioned outside the chamber 12 for preferably providing constant power to the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B, maintaining the voltage at a predefined value by adjusting the reactive gas flow under the command of the controller 50. It is envisioned that the power supply 19 can be a bipolar pulse generator operating at a predetermined frequency (e.g., 50kHz-100kHz). The power supply 19 is constructed and controlled so that during operation, when one of the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B is sputtering (i.e., is an anode), the other of the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B is a cathode. Bipolar sputtering has the advantage of stable electrical conditions because one target is always an anode that is not coated by an insulating layer, even in the oxygen reaction mode.

[0044] The coating assembly 10 further includes a flexible tube 18 positioned to supply high voltage and cooling medium to the first and second magnetrons 14A and 14B. The tube 18 allows the first and second magnetrons 14A and 14B to be freely adjusted in the vacuum space of the chamber 12.

[0045] The coating assembly 10 may include a door (not shown) for allowing a user to insert and remove the liner 22. The door (not shown) may seal the chamber 12 so that a vacuum may be applied to the chamber 12 during processing via a vacuum source 19 (eg, a vacuum pump).

[0046] like Figure 1 As shown in FIG. 1 , the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B are positioned adjacent to one wall of the chamber 12 . It is contemplated that the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B may be positioned at various locations and orientations relative to the liner 22 . Figure 2 , a first magnetron 14A is positioned adjacent one side 22a of the liner 22, and a second magnetron 14B is positioned adjacent an opposite side 22b of the liner 22. The first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B are oriented such that the target surfaces 15 of the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B direct material toward the adjacent sides 22a, 22b, as indicated by Figure 2 . Although the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B are illustrated as being stationary, it is contemplated that the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B may be rotated to apply the sputtering material to the entire periphery of the liner 22. Alternatively, the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B may be stationary and the liner 22 (and a component holder holding the liner 22, described in detail below) may be rotated relative to them. It is also contemplated that the orientation of the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B relative to the object to be coated may change, such as oscillate, as they rotate or as the liner 22 (and its component holder) rotates so that the entire surface of the liner 22 is properly coated.

[0047] During the coating process, it is contemplated that the first and second magnetrons 14A, 14B and the gases supplied to the chamber 12 may be selected to deposit a dense coating of an oxide, nitride, or fluoride or oxyfluoride of yttrium, erbium, or other metal or metal alloy (e.g., Al-W, Al-Si, or a multi-component coating having 3, 4, 5, or more metal elements) -oxide, -oxyfluoride, -fluoride, or a combination thereof. For example, it is contemplated that a film of Al2O3, AlN, AlOF, AlON, Y2O3, YOF, YF3, Er2O3, or ErOF may be deposited on the liner 22.

[0048] As described above, the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B and / or the liner 22 are moved relative to each other, and the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B are oriented so that the entire surface of the liner 22 exposed to the subsequent etching process is coated with the desired film. Referring to FIG3a, the film 24 is illustrated as being applied to the inner surface of the liner 22. The thickness of the film 24 may vary along the surface of the liner 22. FIG3b illustrates an exemplary film thickness distribution along a section IV of the inner surface of the liner 22. The exemplary film thickness distribution shows a low thickness coverage on section I. In sections II-IV, the film thickness is higher with a largely uniform thickness coverage, which is desirable for this specific application example.

[0049] Referring to FIGS. 4a and 4b, according to the second embodiment, the coating assembly 10 may be configured to position the first magnetron 14A adjacent to the first liner 32 and the second magnetron 14B adjacent to the second liner 34. For clarity, the target surfaces 15 of the first magnetron 14A and the second magnetron 14B are shown as ellipses in FIG. 4a. As illustrated, the first magnetron 14A is oriented toward the inner surface of the first liner 32, and the second magnetron 14B is oriented toward the inner surface of the second liner 34. It is contemplated that with the arrangement of the magnetrons 14A, 14B illustrated in FIGS. 4a and 4b, a similar film thickness distribution as disclosed for the first embodiment (see FIGS. 3a and 3b) may be achieved.

[0050] refer to Figure 5 , illustrates a coating assembly 100 according to a third embodiment. The coating assembly 100 includes a chamber 110 defined by a wall 110 a having a door 112 for allowing access to an interior 110 b of the chamber 110 .

[0051] The first and second magnetrons 114A, 114B are positioned within the interior 110b of the chamber 110. In the illustrated embodiment, the first and second magnetrons 114A, 114B are attached to a rotating assembly 120 (ie, similar to a component holder) that extends through one wall 110a of the chamber 110.

[0052] The rotating assembly 120 includes a motor 122 that causes the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B to rotate within the interior of the chamber 110 when commanded to do so by the controller 150. In the illustrated embodiment, the rotating assembly 120 includes a single axis about which the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B rotate.

[0053] Both the power supply 132 and the cooling device 134 controlled by the controller 150 may be connected to the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B via the rotating assembly 120. The power supply 132 (similar to the power supply 16) may be a bipolar pulse generator operating at a predetermined frequency (e.g., 50kHz-100kHz). During operation, the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B may alternate between cathode and anode, as described in detail above.

[0054] The cooling device 134 may be configured to provide cooling to the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B via the rotating assembly 120 during operation, for example, via a cooling fluid such as water. The first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B may have an internal volume that is sealed relative to the interior 110b of the chamber 110, so that the internal volume of the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B can be maintained at atmospheric pressure while the interior 110b of the chamber 110 is maintained at a vacuum. The internal volume of the magnetron maintained at atmospheric pressure facilitates the technical configuration of the rotating assembly.

[0055] exist Figure 5 In the embodiment illustrated in , the component to be coated is an electrostatic chuck 160. The electrostatic chuck 160 is a component that can be used during wafer processing to hold the wafer at a desired position. As understood by those skilled in the art, the electrostatic chuck 160 may include a mesa surface on which the wafer is held by electrostatic force. The mesa surface defines the minimum contact area of ​​the wafer, and the electrostatic force allows helium buffering to be achieved between the electrostatic chuck 160 and the wafer to provide a thermal bridge. It is desirable that the height of the mesa surface is accurate for uniform electrostatic force. In the illustrated embodiment, the surface to be coated of the electrostatic chuck 160 extends into the interior 110b and faces the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B. The electrostatic chuck 160 may be connected to a second power supply 162 and a second cooling device 164. A second power supply 162 may be provided to maintain the electrostatic chuck 160 at a desired potential for coating, and a second cooling device 164 may be provided to maintain the electrostatic chuck 160 at a desired component temperature for the coating process. It is contemplated that the second power supply 162 may be an RF power supply operating at 13.56 MHz. As illustrated, the controller 150 may control the operation of the second power supply 162 to maintain proper operation of the coating assembly 100. In the illustrated embodiment, the electrostatic chuck 160 is attached to the wall 110a of the chamber 110 and seals the opening in the wall 110a. In this regard, the chamber 110 defines a component holder for the chuck 160.

[0056] It is contemplated that the wall 110a of the chamber 110 may be temperature regulated by a third cooling device 166. During operation, the controller 150 may control the third cooling device 166 to maintain the temperature of the chamber 110 at a predetermined chamber temperature selected to provide a desired coating of the electrostatic chuck 160 or any other component placed within the chamber 110. Prior to venting the chamber 110 to atmosphere, the cooling device 166 may preferably be used to heat the chamber 110 to a predetermined temperature in order to reduce moisture contamination.

[0057] It is contemplated that the same fluid source may be used for cooling device 134, second cooling device 164, and third cooling device 166. It is also contemplated that they may be separated in different fluid devices that individually and independently provide cooling fluid to their respective components.

[0058] 6a and 6b, in a third embodiment, the coating assembly 100 is configured to receive the liner 170. In the illustrated embodiment, the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B are positioned and oriented adjacent to the inner surface 172 of the liner 170 to direct the coating material onto the inner surface 172. The first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B are adjusted at an angle (see, e.g., Figure 2 ) rather than just straight lines can facilitate applying a uniform coating to the 3D shaped surface to be coated. The first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B are attached to the rotating assembly 120 to rotate within the liner 170. It is also contemplated that when the magnetrons 114A, 114B are stationary, the liner 170 itself can rotate relative to the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B. In order to rotate the liner 170 relative to the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B, the liner 170 can be fixed to the rotating assembly 120 instead of being fixed to the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B.

[0059] refer to Figure 7 In yet another embodiment, the first pair of magnetrons 114A, 114B (the view of magnetron 114B is in Figure 7 The first pair of magnetrons 114A, 114B and the second pair of magnetrons 214A, 214B are positioned adjacent to the inner surface 172 of the liner 170, while the second pair of magnetrons 214A, 214B are positioned adjacent to the outer surface 174 of the liner 170. During operation, the first pair of magnetrons 114A, 114B and the second pair of magnetrons 214A, 214B simultaneously apply a coating film to the inner surface 172 and the outer surface 174 of the liner 170, respectively.

[0060] In the embodiments described above in which the part to be coated is a liner 22, 170, the inventors contemplate that if the coating is an oxide or nitride, the chamber 12 may be made of aluminum, or if C4 is used as the gas, the chamber 12 may be made of steel. In these embodiments, the vacuum source 19 may be a pump, such as a turbo pump. As described above, the rotating assembly 120 may supply water (via the cooling device 134) and / or a high voltage and / or a bias voltage (via the power supply 132). In one example, the liner 22, 170 rotates while the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B are stationary. The coating assembly 100 may include a pair of magnetrons 114A, 114B disposed inside the liner (see Figures 6a and 6b) and / or a second pair of magnetrons 214A, 214B disposed outside the liner 170 (see Figure 7 ). Magnetrons 114A, 114B, 214A, 214B may be operated as a single magnetron or a dual magnetron pair. By way of example and not limitation, the supplied gas may be Ar and / or O2 and / or N2 and / or CF4. One or more gas inlets to chamber 12 are not shown.

[0061] In the embodiments described above where the component to be coated is an electrostatic chuck 160 or another component having a flat disk-like shape (e.g., a window), the inventors contemplate that the chamber 12 may be made of aluminum and temperature controlled, as described above in Figure 5 As shown in . In this embodiment, the vacuum source 19 may be a pump, such as a turbo pump. As described above, the rotating assembly 120 may supply water (via the cooling device 134) and / or a high voltage (via the power supply 132). In one example, the first magnetron 114A and the second magnetron 114B are mounted to the rotating assembly 120, and the electrostatic chuck 160 is stationary. The electrostatic chuck 160 may also be used as a cover of the chamber 110, and thus forms a part or wall of the chamber. The coating assembly 100 may include a pair of magnetrons 114A, 114B, which may operate as a single magnetron or a dual magnetron. As an example and not limitation, the gas supplied to the chamber 110 may be Ar and / or O2 and / or N2.

[0062] For the embodiments described above, coating of the components may be accomplished via reactive sputtering, preferably via reactive dual magnetron sputtering, most preferably via bipolar reactive dual magnetron sputtering. The following table summarizes the aforementioned operating components:

[0063]

[0064] Referring to Figures 8a and 8b, as discussed in detail above, various components of the coating assembly 100 may be connected to cooling devices 134, 164 to help maintain those components at a predetermined temperature. According to another embodiment, the component to be coated (e.g., liner 170) may also be in contact with a cooling device (e.g., a water-cooled fixture) along a flange 176 of the liner. When the sputtering flux from the first magnetron 114A or the second magnetron 114B is directed to the liner 170 (Figure 8a) at position B, the temperature distribution in the liner 170 generated by the cooling device and the sputtering flux placed at the flange 176 may be as illustrated in Figure 8b.

[0065] Although the foregoing embodiments have been described with respect to liners and electrostatic chucks, it will be appreciated that those embodiments may be used to apply coating films to other components of semiconductor equipment.

[0066] Although the invention has been described with respect to selected embodiments, it should be understood that the invention is not so limited, but on the contrary is to encompass all modifications and variations falling within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.

Claims

1. An apparatus for coating a semiconductor equipment component, the apparatus comprising: Chamber; a first magnetron and a second magnetron disposed within the chamber for supplying a coating material to a surface of the component; a component holder disposed in the chamber and configured to hold the component, wherein the first magnetron and the second magnetron are configured to be positioned and oriented adjacent to the surface of the component held by the component holder, and the first magnetron and the second magnetron are configured to move relative to the component holder, or the component holder is configured to move relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron during coating of the component; and Means for flexibly adjusting the position and orientation of at least one of the first magnetron and the second magnetron relative to the surface of the component.

2. The device according to claim 1, wherein The movement of the first magnetron and the second magnetron relative to the component holder is achieved by The component holder is configured in a fixed position, and The first magnetron and the second magnetron are configured to move within the chamber.

3. The device according to claim 2, wherein: The first magnetron and the second magnetron are configured to move when the magnetron operates.

4. The device according to claims 1 to 3, wherein: The component forms at least part of the coating chamber wall, preferably the chamber wall, via a dedicated adapter.

5. The device according to claim 4, wherein: The component is an electrostatic chuck or a window.

6. The device according to claims 1 to 3, wherein: The first magnetron and the second magnetron are operated together with a power supply delivering bipolar pulses or as a single magnetron.

7. The device according to claims 1 to 3, wherein: The component is a liner, an electrostatic chuck or a window.

8. The apparatus according to claims 1 to 3, further comprising a third magnetron and a fourth magnetron, wherein: The component is a liner, and the first and second magnetrons are configured to be disposed adjacent to an inner surface of the liner, and the third and fourth magnetrons are configured to be disposed adjacent to an outer surface of the liner.

9. The device according to claims 1 to 3, wherein: The first magnetron and the second magnetron are used with a reactive gas to deposit a film of Al2O3, AlN, AlON, AlOF, Y2O3, YOF, YAG, YE3, Er2O3, ErOF, DLC, or doped DLC, or a combination thereof, on the component.

10. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The first magnetron and the second magnetron are mounted on a rotating assembly.

11. The device according to claim 10, wherein: The component holder is mounted on or is the rotating assembly.

12. The device according to claim 10, wherein: At least one of the magnetrons has an interior volume that is sealed relative to the interior of the chamber.

13. The device according to claim 12, wherein: When the chamber is maintained under vacuum, the interior volume is maintained at atmospheric pressure.

14. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The component holder extends through a wall of the chamber.

15. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The component holder is a wall of the chamber.

16. Apparatus according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein: The first magnetron and the second magnetron are configured to rotate relative to the component holder, or the component holder is configured to rotate relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron during coating of the component.

17. A method for coating a component, the method comprising: positioning a component holder in the coating chamber, the component holder configured to hold the component; positioning and orienting a first magnetron and a second magnetron within the coating chamber adjacent a surface of the component held by the component holder; as well as When sputtering a coating from the first and second magnetrons to the component, the component holder is moved relative to the first and second magnetrons, or the first and second magnetrons are moved relative to the component holder.

18. The method of claim 17, the step of moving the component holder relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron or moving the first magnetron and the second magnetron relative to the component holder comprising changing the orientation of the first magnetron and the second magnetron relative to the surface of the component held by the component holder when the component holder moves relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron or the first magnetron and the second magnetron move relative to the component holder.

19. The method according to claim 17, wherein: The component holder is in a fixed position when the first magnetron and the second magnetron are moved relative to the component holder.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein: The first magnetron and the second magnetron operate when the first magnetron and the second magnetron move relative to the component holder.

21. The method of claim 17, wherein the step of moving the component holder relative to the first magnetron and the second magnetron or moving the first magnetron and the second magnetron relative to the component holder comprises depositing a film of Al2O3, AlN, AlON, AlOF, Y2O3, YOF, YAG or YF3, Er2O3, ErOF, DLC or doped DLC or a combination thereof on the component.

22. The method according to claim 17, wherein: The first magnetron and the second magnetron are operated together with a power supply delivering bipolar pulses or as a single magnetron.

23. The method of claim 17, further comprising depositing with a third magnetron and a fourth magnetron, wherein: The component is a liner, and the first and second magnetrons are disposed adjacent an inner surface of the liner, and the third and fourth magnetrons are disposed adjacent an outer surface of the liner.

24. The method of claim 17, wherein: The first magnetron and the second magnetron are mounted on a rotating assembly.

25. The method according to claim 24, wherein: The component holder is mounted on or is the rotating assembly.

26. The method of claim 17, wherein: The component holder extends through a wall of the coating chamber.

27. The method of claim 17, wherein: The component holder together with the component is at least part of a wall of the coating chamber.

28. The method of claim 17, wherein: The step of moving the component holder relative to the first and second magnetrons or moving the first and second magnetrons relative to the component holder includes rotating the component holder relative to the first and second magnetrons or rotating the first and second magnetrons relative to the component holder.

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