High-power-density magnetron sputtering system and method for liquid target material
The liquid target sputtering system, with its real-time monitoring and closed-loop control, solves the problems of inaccurate temperature control and lack of condition monitoring, achieving highly stable and efficient coating deposition and improving coating quality and deposition rate.
Patent Information
- Authority / Receiving Office
- CN · China
- Patent Type
- Applications(China)
- Current Assignee / Owner
- Filing Date
- 2025-12-26
- Publication Date
- 2026-03-27
AI Technical Summary
Existing liquid target magnetron sputtering technology suffers from problems such as inaccurate temperature control, lack of target condition monitoring, and complex coupling of process parameters, resulting in poor process stability and uneven coating quality.
The temperature and status of the target material are monitored in real time using temperature monitoring and status monitoring modules. Combined with the central control unit, closed-loop control is performed to dynamically adjust the heating power and sputtering parameters, thereby achieving precise coordination of process parameters.
It improves the stability and repeatability of the process, ensures high-quality coating deposition, and enhances the deposition rate, coating density, and adhesion.
Smart Images
Figure CN121737658A_ABST
Abstract
Description
Technical Field
[0001] This invention relates to the field of physical vapor deposition technology, and in particular to a high-power-density magnetron sputtering system and method for liquid targets. Background Technology
[0002] Liquid target technology, by keeping the target in a liquid state during sputtering and utilizing the synergistic effect of evaporation and sputtering, can significantly improve deposition rates and suppress target poisoning. However, existing liquid target magnetron sputtering technologies still have the following problems: Inaccurate temperature control: The temperature of the liquid target directly affects the evaporation rate and plasma characteristics. Existing technologies mostly rely on experience to set the heating power, lacking real-time temperature feedback and closed-loop control, resulting in poor process stability. Lack of target state monitoring: Parameters such as whether the target is completely melted, the thickness of the liquid layer, and surface fluctuations cannot be monitored in real time, affecting sputtering uniformity and coating quality. Complex coupling of process parameters: During liquid target sputtering, multiple parameters such as heating power, sputtering power, gas flow rate, and pulse parameters are coupled together. The lack of intelligent coordinated control strategies makes it difficult to achieve efficient, stable, and repeatable processes. Summary of the Invention
[0003] To solve the above problems, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows: A high-power-density magnetron sputtering system for liquid targets, comprising, Liquid target sputtering module, used to hold and heat target material and generate high-power pulsed magnetron sputtering plasma; Temperature monitoring module, used for non-contact real-time monitoring of temperature distribution on the target surface; The status monitoring module is used to monitor the surface morphology and liquid level of the target material in real time. The central control unit is connected to the liquid target sputtering module, the temperature monitoring module, and the status monitoring module respectively, and is used to dynamically adjust the heating power and sputtering process parameters of the liquid target sputtering module according to the received temperature and status data through a built-in control algorithm. The human-machine interface is connected to the central control unit and is used for parameter setting and data display.
[0004] Furthermore, the liquid target sputtering module includes a target holder, a heating container mounted on the upper surface of the target holder for placing and heating the target material, a magnetic assembly installed inside the target holder for forming a magnetic field above the target material surface to confine the plasma, a high-power sputtering power supply connected to the lower end of the target holder for providing pulsed sputtering energy to the target material, a cover provided on the side of the target holder covering the heating container, and a flow controller, temperature monitoring module, and status monitoring module provided on the inner wall of the cover.
[0005] Furthermore, the temperature monitoring module is an infrared thermal imager used to monitor the sputtering runway area of the target material covered by the field of view.
[0006] Furthermore, the state monitoring module includes a high-speed CCD and a laser displacement sensor. The high-speed CCD is used to acquire target surface images to identify the melting area, and the laser displacement sensor is used to measure the height and fluctuation of the liquid target surface.
[0007] A high-power-density magnetron sputtering method for liquid targets includes the following steps: S1. Target loading and parameter setting: Place the target material in the heating container and set the target temperature range and liquid target state parameters. S2: Start-up and Co-heating: Under an inert gas atmosphere, the heating container and magnetic body assembly are started simultaneously or sequentially to heat the target material; S3: Closed-loop melting control: The temperature and surface image of the target material are collected in real time through the temperature monitoring module and the status monitoring module. The heating power of the heating container and the sputtering power of the magnetic body component are dynamically allocated through the central control unit to make the target material heat up and completely melt to the set temperature range. S4: Steady-state sputtering: The target material is kept in a liquid state. The required reaction gas is introduced into the target material through the flow controller. The central control unit adjusts the sputtering pulse parameters and gas flow rate according to the real-time feedback data from the temperature monitoring module and the status monitoring module to stabilize the plasma and optimize the deposition process. S5: End and Record: After deposition is completed, stop the process and record all process data.
[0008] Furthermore, the reaction gas introduced in step S4 is oxygen, nitrogen, or methane, used to deposit the corresponding oxide, nitride, or carbide coating.
[0009] The beneficial effects of this invention are: By providing real-time temperature and status feedback, precise closed-loop control of the liquid target material is achieved, avoiding temperature drift and state runaway under traditional open-loop control. This greatly improves the stability and repeatability of the process. The stable liquid target state ensures a high and stable evaporation / sputtering particle flux, enabling not only high-speed deposition but also the preparation of denser, better-bonded, high-quality coatings by optimizing ion bombardment conditions. Attached Figure Description
[0010] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with this application and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the invention.
[0011] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, for those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.
[0012] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the present invention; Figure 2 This is a comparison chart of deposited film thickness; Figure 3 Comparison of deposited TiO2 morphology; Figure 4 Comparison of deposited Au morphology. Detailed Implementation
[0013] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this disclosure clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this disclosure will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some, not all, of the embodiments of this disclosure. All other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on the described embodiments of this disclosure without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this disclosure.
[0014] Unless otherwise defined, the technical or scientific terms used in this disclosure shall have the ordinary meaning understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure pertains. The terms "first," "second," and similar terms used in this disclosure do not indicate any order, quantity, or importance, but are merely used to distinguish different components. Terms such as "comprising" or "including" mean that the element or object preceding the word encompasses the elements or objects listed following the word and their equivalents, without excluding other elements or objects. Terms such as "upper," "lower," "left," and "right" are used only to indicate relative positional relationships, and these relative positional relationships may change accordingly when the absolute position of the described object changes.
[0015] A high-power-density magnetron sputtering system for liquid targets, comprising, Liquid target sputtering module, used to hold and heat target material and generate high-power pulsed magnetron sputtering plasma; Temperature monitoring module, used for non-contact real-time monitoring of temperature distribution on the target surface; The status monitoring module is used to monitor the surface morphology and liquid level of the target material in real time. The central control unit is connected to the liquid target sputtering module, the temperature monitoring module, and the status monitoring module respectively. It is used to dynamically adjust the heating power and sputtering process parameters of the liquid target sputtering module according to the received temperature and status data through a built-in control algorithm. The control algorithm adopts existing control methods such as PID control, fuzzy logic, or model predictive control.
[0016] The human-machine interface is connected to the central control unit and is used for parameter setting and data display.
[0017] Specifically, the liquid target sputtering module includes a target holder, a heating container mounted on the upper surface of the target holder for placing and heating the target material, a magnetic assembly installed inside the target holder for forming a magnetic field above the target material surface to confine the plasma, a high-power sputtering power supply connected to the lower end of the target holder for providing pulsed sputtering energy to the target material, a cover provided on the side of the target holder covering the heating container, and a flow controller, temperature monitoring module, and status monitoring module provided on the inner wall of the cover.
[0018] Specifically, the temperature monitoring module is an infrared thermal imager used to monitor the sputtering runway area of the target material covered by the field of view.
[0019] Specifically, the state monitoring module includes a high-speed CCD and a laser displacement sensor. The high-speed CCD is used to acquire images of the target surface to identify the melting area, and the laser displacement sensor is used to measure the height and fluctuation of the liquid target surface.
[0020] A high-power-density magnetron sputtering method for liquid targets includes the following steps: S1. Target loading and parameter setting: Place the target material in the heating container and set the target temperature range and liquid target state parameters. S2: Start-up and Co-heating: Under an inert gas atmosphere, the heating container and magnetic body assembly are started simultaneously or sequentially to heat the target material; S3: Closed-loop melting control: The temperature and surface image of the target material are collected in real time through the temperature monitoring module and the status monitoring module. The heating power of the heating container and the sputtering power of the magnetic body component are dynamically allocated through the central control unit to make the target material heat up and completely melt to the set temperature range. S4: Steady-state sputtering: The target material is kept in a liquid state. The required reactive gas is introduced into the target material through the flow controller. The central control unit adjusts the sputtering pulse parameters and gas flow rate according to the real-time feedback data from the temperature monitoring module and the status monitoring module to stabilize the plasma and optimize the deposition process. The reactive gas is oxygen, nitrogen or methane, which is used to deposit the corresponding oxide, nitride or carbide coating. S5: End and Record: After deposition is completed, stop the process and record all process data.
[0021] In this invention, when the target material is titanium, the heating container 1 is a molybdenum crucible, the temperature monitoring module is an infrared thermal imager facing the target surface, and the status monitoring module is a coaxially integrated high-speed CCD (high-speed camera). The Ti target temperature is set to 1700±10℃ via the human-machine interface, the sputtering power density is set to 30 W / cm², the pulse frequency to 40 kHz, the pulse width to 20 μs, the O₂ gas flow rate to 50 sccm, and the Ar gas flow rate to 100 sccm. The Ti target material is placed in the molybdenum crucible, and the substrate is positioned 150 mm directly above it. A vacuum of 5 × 10⁻⁶ is then applied. -5 At Pa, Ar gas is introduced to 0.5 Pa, and the central control unit simultaneously starts the heating container 1 (initial power 1 kW) and the high-power sputtering power supply (initial power 500 W). The infrared thermal imager shows that the temperature at the center of the target surface gradually rises, and the high-speed camera shows local bright spots on the target surface (i.e., indicating that the target material has begun to melt). Based on temperature feedback, the central control unit gradually reduces the power of the heating container while increasing the power of the high-power sputtering power supply to 2 kW, utilizing the sputtering self-heating effect to maintain heating. This coordinated control method enables the Ti target to melt uniformly and completely within 5 minutes. After the target material has completely melted, O2 gas is introduced. The steady-state control stage begins. At this time, the central control unit fine-tunes the pulse width to 18 μs based on the real-time temperature (stabilized at around 1700℃) and the calmness of the liquid surface monitored by the high-speed camera to suppress minor disturbances that may be caused by the introduction of oxygen. After 30 minutes of deposition, all processes are stopped, such as... Figure 1 As shown, compared to the traditional liquid target process without feedback control (fixed parameters), the coating thickness measured in this invention is 1.65 μm, and the calculated average deposition rate is 55.0 nm / min. The deposition rate of the traditional liquid target process without feedback control (fixed parameters) fluctuates greatly, averaging about 45 nm / min, while the rate using solid target reactive sputtering is only about 4 nm / min. Figure 3 As shown in Table 1, Figure 3 The left side shows the morphology of the present invention, and the right side shows the morphology of the conventional one. EDS analysis of the present invention shows that the O / Ti atomic ratio of the coating is close to the ideal stoichiometry of 2. SEM shows that the coating with feedback has smaller grain size and higher density.
[0022]
[0023] In another embodiment, the housing 4 is also equipped with a glow discharge spectrometer (OES), which is connected to the central control unit. When the target material is Au, it is initially started in an Ar atmosphere to melt the Au target. After the temperature stabilizes at 1200°C, the central control unit confirms the liquid level is stable based on the status monitoring module. While maintaining the total power, it slowly reduces the Ar gas flow rate. Simultaneously, based on the feedback from the glow discharge spectrometer (OES), it proportionally increases the power of the high-power sputtering power supply to maintain the discharge. When the Ar gas flow rate drops to near 0, it maintains a pure Au vapor self-sputtering state. Simultaneously, through the monitoring of the temperature monitoring module, it adjusts the pulse width of the heating container 2 and the high-power sputtering power supply in real time to control their power, balancing evaporation heat dissipation and sputtering heat generation. Figure 4 As shown, Figure 4 The left side shows the morphology of the present invention, and the right side shows the morphology of the conventional method. The deposition rate reaches 1100 nm / min, which is more than 30 times that of conventional solid target sputtering. SEM shows that the impurity content in the coating is less than 0.1 at.%, and the surface is smoother, the grains are finer, and the roughness is lower compared to gold films deposited without a temperature feedback system.
[0024] (1) Unless otherwise defined, the same reference numerals in the embodiments and drawings of this disclosure have the same meaning.
[0025] (2) The accompanying drawings of the embodiments of this disclosure only involve the structures involved in the embodiments of this disclosure. Other structures can be referred to the general design.
[0026] (3) For clarity, components or areas are enlarged in the drawings used to describe embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be understood that when an element is referred to as being “above” or “below” another element, the element may be “directly” located “above” or “below” the other element, or there may be an intermediate element.
[0027] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this disclosure, but the scope of protection of this disclosure is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this disclosure should be included within the scope of protection of this disclosure. Therefore, the scope of protection of this disclosure should be determined by the scope of the claims.
Claims
1. A high-power-density magnetron sputtering system for liquid targets, characterized in that: include, Liquid target sputtering module, used to hold and heat target material and generate high-power pulsed magnetron sputtering plasma; Temperature monitoring module, used for non-contact real-time monitoring of temperature distribution on the target surface; The status monitoring module is used to monitor the surface morphology and liquid level of the target material in real time. The central control unit is connected to the liquid target sputtering module, the temperature monitoring module, and the status monitoring module respectively, and is used to dynamically adjust the heating power and sputtering process parameters of the liquid target sputtering module according to the received temperature and status data through a built-in control algorithm. The human-machine interface is connected to the central control unit and is used for parameter setting and data display.
2. The high-power-density magnetron sputtering system for liquid target material according to claim 1, characterized in that: The liquid target sputtering module includes a target holder, a heating container mounted on the upper surface of the target holder for placing and heating the target material, a magnetic assembly installed inside the target holder for forming a magnetic field above the target material surface to confine the plasma, a high-power sputtering power supply connected to the lower end of the target holder for providing pulsed sputtering energy to the target material, a cover provided on the side of the target holder covering the heating container, and a flow controller, temperature monitoring module, and status monitoring module provided on the inner wall of the cover.
3. The high-power-density magnetron sputtering system for liquid target material according to claim 2, characterized in that: The temperature monitoring module is an infrared thermal imager used to monitor the sputtering runway area of the target material covered by the field of view.
4. The high-power-density magnetron sputtering system for liquid target material according to claim 2, characterized in that: The status monitoring module includes a high-speed CCD and a laser displacement sensor. The high-speed CCD is used to acquire images of the target surface to identify the melting area, and the laser displacement sensor is used to measure the height and fluctuation of the liquid target surface.
5. A high-power-density magnetron sputtering method for liquid targets, used in a high-power-density magnetron sputtering system for liquid targets as described in any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that: Includes the following steps: S1. Target loading and parameter setting: Place the target material in the heating container and set the target temperature range and liquid target state parameters. S2: Start-up and Co-heating: Under an inert gas atmosphere, the heating container and magnetic body assembly are started simultaneously or sequentially to heat the target material; S3: Closed-loop melting control: The temperature and surface image of the target material are collected in real time through the temperature monitoring module and the status monitoring module. The heating power of the heating container and the sputtering power of the magnetic body component are dynamically allocated through the central control unit to make the target material heat up and completely melt to the set temperature range. S4: Steady-state sputtering: The target material is kept in a liquid state. The required reaction gas is introduced into the target material through the flow controller. The central control unit adjusts the sputtering pulse parameters and gas flow rate according to the real-time feedback data from the temperature monitoring module and the status monitoring module to stabilize the plasma and optimize the deposition process. S5: End and Record: After deposition is completed, stop the process and record all process data.
6. The high-power-density magnetron sputtering method for liquid target material according to claim 5, characterized in that: The reaction gas introduced in step S4 is oxygen, nitrogen, or methane, used to deposit the corresponding oxide, nitride, or carbide coating.