Magnetron sputtering coating equipment

Abstract

The invention discloses magnetron sputtering coating equipment which comprises a control area and a coating area, and the control area and the coating area are distributed up and down and are separated by a coating chamber top plate; at least one group of rotating cathodes is arranged in the coating area, and the rotating cathodes are mounted in the sealed coating chamber; gas supply assemblies are arranged on the two sides of the rotating cathode, the gas supply assemblies extend in the length direction of the rotating cathode, and the sputtering rate and the coating uniformity are controlled through the flow and pressure of gas; the air supply assemblies on the two sides are each provided with a cooling assembly, and the air supply assemblies are cooled through cooling media circularly flowing in the cooling assemblies. According to the magnetron sputtering coating equipment, the air supply plate is provided with the cooling plate, and the air supply plate is cooled through the cooling medium which circularly flows in the snake-shaped cooling flow channel, so that the air supply plate is prevented from being heated and deformed, the accuracy of the position of each air supply port is ensured, the air supply uniformity of each part of a coating workpiece is ensured, and the coating quality is improved. And the sputter coating quality is further improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of magnetron sputtering, and in particular to a magnetron sputtering coating device. Background Art

[0002] Magnetron sputtering is a coating technology that introduces a magnetic field on the target cathode surface and uses the magnetic field to confine charged particles to increase the plasma density and thus the sputtering rate. It is mainly used to prepare multi-material thin films such as metals, semiconductors, and insulators.

[0003] During the magnetron sputtering process, the ion beam bombarding the target surface will generate a large amount of heat, which will cause the equipment to overheat, thereby affecting the stability of the equipment and the quality of the sputtering coating.

[0004] However, existing magnetron sputtering equipment usually uses circulating cooling water to cool the target core (magnetic rod), and is not equipped with cooling for other components such as the gas supply components. The lack of cooling of the gas supply components will cause deformation at high temperatures, resulting in uneven gas supply to various parts of the coated workpiece, ultimately affecting the quality of the sputtering coating. Summary of the Invention

[0005] The object of the present invention is to provide a magnetron sputtering coating device to solve the problem that the quality of sputtering coating is affected by uneven gas supply to different parts of the coating workpiece.

[0006] In order to solve the above technical problems, the present invention provides a magnetron sputtering coating device, comprising a control area and a coating area, wherein the control area and the coating area are distributed up and down and separated by a coating chamber top plate; At least one set of rotating cathodes is provided in the coating area, and the rotating cathodes are installed in a sealed coating chamber; Gas supply components are provided on both sides of the rotating cathode, and the gas supply components extend along the length direction of the rotating cathode, and the sputtering rate and the uniformity of the coating are controlled by the flow rate and pressure of the gas; The air supply components on both sides are respectively configured with cooling components, and the air supply components are cooled by the cooling medium circulating in the cooling components.

[0007] Preferably, two groups of rotating cathodes are arranged in parallel in the coating area, and each group of rotating cathodes is equipped with an independent driving mechanism, and the target barrels in the rotating cathodes are driven to rotate by the driving mechanisms.

[0008] Preferably, the air supply plate in the air supply assembly is connected to the cooling plate in the cooling assembly, and the contact surfaces of the two plates are separated by a carbon film.

[0009] Preferably, a graded air supply channel is provided on the contact surface between the air supply plate and the cooling plate, wherein the graded air supply channel includes a main air supply channel, a primary air supply channel, a secondary air supply channel, a tertiary air supply channel and a quaternary air supply channel opened in the middle of the air supply plate.

[0010] Preferably, the first-level air supply duct extends to both sides from the end of the main air supply duct, the second-level air supply duct extends to both sides from the end of the first-level air supply duct, the third-level air supply duct extends to both sides from the end of the second-level air supply duct, and the fourth-level air supply duct extends to both sides from the end of the third-level air supply duct; after the main air supply duct is divided into four levels, 16 air supply ports are formed at both ends of the eight fourth-level air supply ducts.

[0011] Preferably, the 16 gas supply ports are evenly spaced along the length direction of the gas supply plate, and each gas supply port passes through the gas supply plate, thereby uniformly guiding the gas into the coating chamber.

[0012] Preferably, a serpentine cooling channel is provided in the cooling plate, and a cooling pipe is connected to one side of the cooling plate, and a cooling medium is introduced by the cooling pipe to circulate in the serpentine cooling channel to cool the air supply plate.

[0013] Preferably, an I-shaped connector is provided in the middle of the cooling plate, through which the cooling plate is connected to the top plate of the coating chamber, and an air supply channel is provided in the I-shaped connector, which is connected to the air supply connector in the control area; and an air supply channel is provided in the cooling plate, which is connected to the main air supply channel in the middle of the air supply plate, and the coating gas passes through the I-shaped connector and the cooling plate in sequence and enters the graded air supply channel of the air supply plate; A side of the air supply plate away from the cooling plate is covered with a first protective plate for protecting the air supply plate; A side of the cooling plate away from the air supply plate is covered with a second protective plate for protecting the cooling plate.

[0014] Preferably, an annular cooling channel is provided on a side of the coating chamber top plate close to the control zone, and the coating chamber top plate is cooled by a circulating cooling medium.

[0015] Preferably, a cooling system and an air supply system are provided in the control area; the cooling system provides cooling medium for the rotating cathode, the cooling assembly and the coating chamber top plate respectively; the air supply system provides the air supply assembly with the gas required for coating.

[0016] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: 1. The air supply plate in the magnetron sputtering coating equipment of the present invention is equipped with a cooling plate. The cooling medium circulating in the serpentine cooling channel cools the air supply plate, thereby preventing the air supply plate from being deformed due to heat, ensuring the accuracy of the position of each air supply port, and thus ensuring uniform air supply to all parts of the coated workpiece, further improving the quality of the sputtering coating. 2. In the present invention, since the graded air supply channel is openly arranged on the air supply plate, it is separated from the cooling plate by a carbon film, and the carbon film can not only play a sealing role, but also improve the heat transfer between the two plates, further improving the cooling effect. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic structural diagram of the magnetron sputtering coating device provided by the present invention from a first perspective; Figure 2 This is a schematic structural diagram of the magnetron sputtering coating device provided by the present invention from a second perspective; Figure 3 This is a front view of the magnetron sputtering coating device provided by the present invention; Figure 4 It is a top view of the magnetron sputtering coating equipment provided by the present invention; Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the installation of the air supply plate and the cooling plate provided by the present invention; Figure 6 is a front view of the air supply plate provided by the present invention; Figure 7 is a rear view of the air supply plate provided by the present invention; Figure 8 is a cross-sectional view of a cooling plate provided by the present invention; Figure 9 Schematic diagram of the installation of the first protective plate and the second protective plate provided by the present invention; Figure 10 It is a top view of the top plate of the coating chamber provided by the present invention.

[0018] In the figure: 1. Coating chamber top plate; 101. Annular cooling channel; 2. Rotating cathode; 3. Driving mechanism; 4. Air supply plate; 401. Main air supply channel; 402. Primary air supply channel; 403. Secondary air supply channel; 404. Tertiary air supply channel; 405. Fourth air supply channel; 406. Air supply port; 5. Cooling plate; 501. Serpentine cooling channel; 502. Cooling pipe; 6. Carbon film; 7. I-type connector; 8. First protective plate; 9. Second protective plate; 10. Cooling system; 11. Air supply system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0019] The present invention is further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. The advantages and features of the present invention will become more apparent from the following description and claims. It should be noted that the drawings are greatly simplified and not to exact scale, and are intended solely to facilitate and clearly illustrate the embodiments of the present invention.

[0020] In the description of the present invention, it should be understood that the terms "center", "longitudinal", "lateral", "up", "down", "front", "back", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside" and the like indicate orientations or positional relationships based on the orientations or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as limiting the present invention. In addition, the terms "first", "second", etc. are only used for descriptive purposes and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, features defined as "first", "second", etc. may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features. In the description of the present invention, unless otherwise specified, "multiple" means two or more.

[0021] In the description of the present invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise expressly specified or limited, the terms "mounted," "connected," and "connected" should be understood in a broad sense. For example, they may refer to fixed connections, detachable connections, or integral connections; mechanical connections or electrical connections; direct connections or indirect connections through an intermediate medium; and internal communication between two components. Those skilled in the art will understand the specific meanings of the above terms in the present invention based on specific circumstances.

[0022] In addition, the features, operations, and characteristics described in this specification may be combined in any appropriate manner to form various embodiments. Similarly, the steps or actions described in the method may be reordered in a manner readily apparent to those skilled in the art. Therefore, the various sequences in the specification and drawings are provided for clarity of description of a particular embodiment and are not mandatory unless otherwise specified. Example

[0023] The present invention provides a magnetron sputtering coating device, please refer to Figure 1-4, including a control area and a coating area, the control area and the coating area are distributed up and down, and are separated in the middle by a coating chamber top plate 1; at least one set of rotating cathodes 2 is provided in the coating area, and the rotating cathodes 2 are installed in a sealed coating chamber; gas supply components are provided on both sides of the rotating cathode 2, and the gas supply components extend along the length direction of the rotating cathode 2, and the sputtering rate and the uniformity of the coating are controlled by the flow rate and pressure of the gas; the gas supply components on both sides are respectively equipped with cooling components, and the gas supply components are cooled by the cooling medium circulating in the cooling components.

[0024] In this embodiment, two groups of rotating cathodes 2 are arranged in parallel in the coating area, and each group of rotating cathodes 2 is equipped with an independent driving mechanism 3 , which drives the target barrels in the rotating cathodes 2 to rotate respectively.

[0025] Specifically, such as Figure 5 As shown, the air supply plate 4 in the air supply assembly is connected to the cooling plate 5 in the cooling assembly, and the contact surfaces of the two plates are separated by a carbon film 6.

[0026] Further, such as Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, graded air supply channels are provided on the contact surface between the air supply plate 4 and the cooling plate 5, wherein the graded air supply channels include a main air supply channel 401 opened in the middle of the air supply plate 4, a primary air supply channel 402, a secondary air supply channel 403, a tertiary air supply channel 404 and a quaternary air supply channel 405.

[0027] The primary air supply channel 402 extends from the end of the main air supply channel 401 to both sides, the secondary air supply channel 403 extends from the end of the primary air supply channel 402 to both sides, the tertiary air supply channel 404 extends from the end of the secondary air supply channel 403 to both sides, and the quaternary air supply channel 405 extends from the end of the tertiary air supply channel 404 to both sides. After the main air supply channel 401 is divided into four levels, 16 air supply ports 406 are formed at both ends of the eight quaternary air supply channels 405. Because the graded air supply channels are open on the air supply plate 4, they are separated from the cooling plate 5 by a carbon film 6. The carbon film 6 not only acts as a seal, but also improves heat transfer between the two plates, further enhancing the cooling effect.

[0028] In this embodiment, the 16 gas supply ports 406 are evenly spaced along the length of the gas supply plate 4 , and each gas supply port 406 passes through the gas supply plate 4 , thereby uniformly guiding the gas into the coating chamber.

[0029] Specifically, such as Figure 8As shown, a serpentine cooling channel 501 is opened in the cooling plate 5, and a cooling pipe 502 is connected to one side of the cooling plate 5. The cooling medium introduced by the cooling pipe 502 circulates in the serpentine cooling channel 501 to cool the air supply plate 4.

[0030] Further, such as Figure 9 As shown, an I-shaped connector 7 is provided in the middle of the cooling plate 5, and the cooling plate 5 is connected to the coating chamber top plate 1 through the I-shaped connector 7, and an air supply channel is opened in the I-shaped connector 7, and is connected to the air supply connector in the control area; and an air supply channel connected to the main supply air duct 401 in the middle of the air supply plate 4 is opened in the cooling plate 5, and the coating gas enters the graded supply air duct of the air supply plate 4 after passing through the I-shaped connector 7 and the cooling plate 5 in turn; the side of the air supply plate 4 away from the cooling plate 5 is covered with a first protective plate 8 for protecting the air supply plate 4; the side of the cooling plate 5 away from the air supply plate 4 is covered with a second protective plate 9 for protecting the cooling plate 5.

[0031] Since the air supply plate 4 and the cooling plate 5 are both located in the coating chamber, protective plates are added to the air supply plate 4 and the cooling plate 5 to prevent them from being damaged by the coating process.

[0032] For details, please refer to Figure 10 An annular cooling channel 101 is provided on the coating chamber ceiling 1 near the control zone. This channel cools the coating chamber ceiling 1 via a circulating cooling medium. High temperatures during the coating process can cause deformation of the coating chamber ceiling 1. Effective cooling can reduce this deformation, thereby improving the sealing performance of the coating chamber below.

[0033] For details, please refer to Figure 1-4 A cooling system 10 and an air supply system 11 are provided in the control area; the cooling system 10 provides cooling medium for the rotating cathode 2, the cooling component and the coating chamber top plate 1 respectively; the air supply system 11 provides the gas required for coating for the air supply component.

[0034] The air supply plate in the magnetron sputtering coating equipment of the present invention is equipped with a cooling plate, and the air supply plate is cooled by the cooling medium circulating in the serpentine cooling channel, thereby avoiding deformation of the air supply plate due to heat, ensuring the accuracy of the position of each air supply port, thereby ensuring the uniformity of air supply to various parts of the coated workpiece, and further improving the quality of sputtering coating.

[0035] The above description is only a description of the preferred embodiments of the present invention and does not limit the scope of the present invention. Any changes and modifications made by ordinary technicians in the field of the present invention based on the above disclosure shall fall within the scope of protection of the claims.

Claims

1. A magnetron sputtering coating device, characterized in that: It comprises a control area and a coating area, wherein the control area and the coating area are distributed up and down and are separated in the middle by a coating chamber top plate (1); At least one set of rotating cathodes (2) is provided in the coating area, and the rotating cathodes (2) are installed in a sealed coating chamber; Gas supply components are provided on both sides of the rotating cathode (2), and the gas supply components extend along the length direction of the rotating cathode (2), and the sputtering rate and the uniformity of the coating are controlled by the flow rate and pressure of the gas; The air supply components on both sides are respectively configured with cooling components, and the air supply components are cooled by the cooling medium circulating in the cooling components.

2. The magnetron sputtering coating device according to claim 1, characterized in that: Two groups of rotating cathodes (2) are arranged in parallel in the coating area, and each group of rotating cathodes (2) is equipped with an independent driving mechanism (3), and the target barrels in the rotating cathodes (2) are driven to rotate by the driving mechanism (3).

3. The magnetron sputtering coating device according to claim 1, characterized in that: The air supply plate (4) in the air supply assembly is connected to the cooling plate (5) in the cooling assembly, and the contact surfaces of the two plates are separated by a carbon film (6).

4. The magnetron sputtering coating device according to claim 3, characterized in that: A graded air supply channel is provided on the contact surface between the air supply plate (4) and the cooling plate (5), wherein the graded air supply channel comprises a main air supply channel (401) opened in the middle of the air supply plate (4), a primary air supply channel (402), a secondary air supply channel (403), a tertiary air supply channel (404) and a quaternary air supply channel (405).

5. The magnetron sputtering coating device according to claim 4, characterized in that: The first-level air supply channel (402) extends from the end of the main air supply channel (401) to both sides, the second-level air supply channel (403) extends from the end of the first-level air supply channel (402) to both sides, the third-level air supply channel (404) extends from the end of the second-level air supply channel (403) to both sides, and the fourth-level air supply channel (405) extends from the end of the third-level air supply channel (404) to both sides; after the main air supply channel (401) is divided into four levels, 16 air supply ports (406) are formed at both ends of the eight fourth-level air supply channels (405).

6. The magnetron sputtering coating device according to claim 5, characterized in that: The 16 gas supply ports (406) are evenly spaced along the length direction of the gas supply plate (4), and each gas supply port (406) passes through the gas supply plate (4), thereby evenly guiding the gas into the coating chamber.

7. The magnetron sputtering coating device according to claim 3, characterized in that: A serpentine cooling channel (501) is provided in the cooling plate (5), and a cooling pipe (502) is connected to one side of the cooling plate (5). A cooling medium introduced by the cooling pipe (502) circulates in the serpentine cooling channel (501) to cool the air supply plate (4).

8. The magnetron sputtering coating device according to claim 4, characterized in that: A type connector (7) is provided in the middle of the cooling plate (5), and the cooling plate (5) is connected to the top plate (1) of the coating chamber through the type connector (7), and an air supply channel is provided in the type connector (7) and is connected to the air supply connector in the control area; and an air supply channel connected to the main air supply channel (401) in the middle of the air supply plate (4) is provided in the cooling plate (5), and the coating gas enters the graded air supply channel of the air supply plate (4) after passing through the type connector (7) and the cooling plate (5) in sequence; A side of the air supply plate (4) away from the cooling plate (5) is covered with a first protective plate (8) for protecting the air supply plate (4); A side of the cooling plate (5) away from the air supply plate (4) is covered with a second protective plate (9) for protecting the cooling plate (5).

9. The magnetron sputtering coating device according to claim 1, characterized in that: An annular cooling channel (101) is provided on one side of the coating chamber top plate (1) close to the control zone, and the coating chamber top plate (1) is cooled by a circulating cooling medium.

10. The magnetron sputtering coating device according to claim 1, characterized in that: A cooling system (10) and an air supply system (11) are provided in the control area; the cooling system (10) provides cooling medium for the rotating cathode (2), the cooling component and the coating chamber top plate (1), respectively; and the air supply system (11) provides the air supply component with gas required for coating.

Images