A movable magnetic field magnetron target

Abstract

A movable magnetic field magnetron target belongs to the field of magnetron sputtering technology, and solves the problems of uneven magnetic field distribution on the target surface, affecting the stability of the sputtering process, uneven film thickness distribution, and low target material utilization rate in the prior art. It includes a planar target connecting flange with a target body seat on the front side, a target body on the front side of the target body seat, a magnetron target material on the target body, and the two ends of the circulating cooling channel formed by the intercooler and the target body are respectively connected to the target body inlet and outlet water pipes; a magnet fixing seat is arranged in the magnet displacement adjustment space formed by the planar target connecting flange, the target body seat and the target body, an adjustable magnet is arranged on the magnet fixing seat, and a connecting back plate arranged at the rear of the magnet fixing seat is connected to the telescopic end of the driving cylinder. It has a reasonable design and a compact structure, can optimize the magnetic field distribution, expand the target material sputtering area, change the target material sputtering etching characteristics, increase the target material etching area, realize uniform sputtering of the target material, effectively improve the target material utilization rate, and has strong practicality.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model belongs to the technical field of magnetron sputtering, and in particular relates to a movable magnetic field magnetron target. Background Art

[0002] Target utilization, sputtering rate and film quality have always been the three major issues that researchers in the field of magnetron sputtering technology are concerned about, and the low target utilization is the most troubling of these issues. The traditional magnetron sputtering magnetic field structure is fixed, but due to the design defects of the internal magnetron cathode structure and the uneven distribution of the target magnetic field, uneven sputtering and etching occur on the target surface; over time, a very narrow etching groove will be formed in the area with high plasma density, affecting the stability of the sputtering process, uneven distribution of film thickness, and reducing the utilization of the target. Therefore, it is necessary to improve the design structure of the magnetic field of the magnetron sputtering device in the prior art. Utility Model Content

[0003] The utility model aims at solving the above problems and provides a movable magnetic field magnetron target which can optimize magnetic field distribution, expand target material sputtering area, change target material sputtering and etching characteristics, increase target material etching area, realize uniform sputtering of target material, effectively improve target material utilization rate and has strong practicality.

[0004] The technical scheme adopted by the utility model is as follows: the movable magnetic field magnetron target comprises a plane target connecting flange, characterized in that: a target body seat is arranged at the front side of the plane target connecting flange, a plane target insulating flange is arranged between the target body seat and the plane target connecting flange, a target body is arranged at the front side of the target body seat, a magnetron target material is arranged on the target body, an intercooling plate is arranged between the magnetron target material and the target body, and the two ends of the circulating cooling channel formed by the intercooling plate and the target body are respectively connected with the target body inlet and outlet water pipes; a conductive electrode plate is arranged at the rear side of the plane target connecting flange; a magnet fixing seat is arranged in the magnet displacement adjustment space formed by the plane target connecting flange, the target body seat and the target body, an adjustable magnet is arranged on the magnet fixing seat, the rear part of the magnet fixing seat extends to the outside of the connecting flange through the opening at the rear side of the magnet displacement adjustment space, and a connecting back plate is arranged at the rear part of the magnet fixing seat, and the connecting back plate is connected to the telescopic end of the driving cylinder through the cylinder transition plate.

[0005] A target pressing frame is arranged between the edge of the magnetron target and the target body and the intercooling plate, so as to facilitate the positioning and connection of the magnetron target on the target body and the replacement of the magnetron target.

[0006] The outer side of the target inlet and outlet water pipe is provided with an inlet and outlet water pipe insulating guide sleeve, and the magnet fixing seat and the connecting back plate are respectively provided with through holes at positions corresponding to the target inlet and outlet water pipes. The coolant is circulated in the circulating cooling channel formed by the intermediate cooling plate and the target body through the target inlet and outlet water pipes at both ends, and then the coolant exchanges heat with the magnetron target material in the working state when flowing through the inside of the target body; and the target inlet and outlet water pipe with the inlet and outlet water pipe insulating guide sleeve on the outer side is used to stably guide the connecting back plate, the magnet fixing seat and the adjustable magnet thereon to move back and forth with the extension and retraction of the driving cylinder.

[0007] The driving cylinder is a three-axis cylinder, the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder is connected to the cylinder fixing plate through a cylinder bracket, and the cylinder fixing plate is fixedly connected to the rear side of the planar target connection flange through a plurality of groups of cylinder plate support columns; the telescopic rod of the three-axis cylinder and the ends of the cylinder guide shaft are respectively connected to the cylinder transition plate through the three-axis connecting plate that runs through the middle of the cylinder fixing plate. The telescopic rod of the three-axis cylinder is extended and retracted to drive the connecting back plate connected to the cylinder transition plate and the adjustable magnet thereon to move back and forth in the magnet displacement adjustment space, thereby realizing the relative movement of the magnetic field and the magnetron target material, effectively improving the magnetic field distribution on the target surface, so that after long-term use, the target material is no longer formed with a narrow and deep etching groove on its surface, but a larger range of uniform etching area, thereby improving the stability of the sputtering process.

[0008] The rear end of the three-axis cylinder is provided with a cylinder limit fixing shaft, the end of the cylinder limit fixing shaft is provided with a cylinder limit adjustment plate, the cylinder limit adjustment plate is provided with a limit adjustment screw, the limit adjustment screw is rotatably provided on the cylinder limit adjustment plate, and the end of the limit adjustment screw is limit-connected with the end of the cylinder guide shaft at the corresponding position. The limit adjustment screw provided on the cylinder limit adjustment plate is used to mechanically limit the retracted position of the telescopic rod of the three-axis cylinder and the cylinder guide shaft, thereby limiting the position of the adjustable magnet moving backward.

[0009] The three-axis cylinder is provided with a cylinder extension limit rod arranged along the cylinder extension direction, and the cylinder extension limit rod is fixedly connected to the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder through a rod connecting support. Correspondingly, a cylinder limit rod guide seat is fixedly provided at the end of the cylinder guide shaft, and the cylinder limit rod guide seat is slidably sleeved on the cylinder extension limit rod, and a limit flange is provided on the cylinder extension limit rod. The extension position of the telescopic rod of the three-axis cylinder and the cylinder guide shaft is mechanically limited by the cooperation and limitation of the cylinder limit rod guide seat at the end of the cylinder guide shaft and the limit flange on the cylinder extension limit rod, thereby limiting the forward movement position of the adjustable magnet.

[0010] The three-axis cylinder is provided with a cylinder extension scale rod arranged along the cylinder extension direction, the cylinder extension scale rod is provided with a marking scale, and the cylinder extension scale rod is fixedly connected to the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder through a rod connecting support, and accordingly, the end of the cylinder guide shaft is fixedly provided with an extension scale marking seat, and the extension scale marking seat is slidably sleeved on the cylinder extension scale rod. The extension distance of the telescopic rod of the three-axis cylinder is displayed by using the alignment mark of the extension scale marking seat at the end of the cylinder guide shaft and the marking scale on the cylinder extension scale rod, so as to facilitate the adjustment of the adjustable magnet.

[0011] Beneficial effects of the utility model:

[0012] 1. A driving cylinder is used, and the magnet can move back and forth to achieve relative movement between the magnetic field and the target material, effectively improving the magnetic field distribution on the target surface. After long-term use, the target material no longer forms a narrow and deep etching groove on the surface, but a larger uniform etching area, which effectively improves the stability of the sputtering process.

[0013] 2. The scope of action of the magnetic field is expanded, the orthogonal area of ​​the electromagnetic field is widened, the sputtering area of ​​the target material is effectively expanded, and the utilization rate of the target material is improved.

[0014] 3. With process adjustability, the process can be adjusted at any time according to needs when preparing multi-layer films, which can achieve large-area uniform coating and reduce coating costs.

[0015] 4. Under constant power conditions, the magnetic field depth can be adjusted to keep the magnetic field voltage and current constant. During large-scale batch coating, the same process can be kept stable and consistent for different furnaces. This effectively solves the problem that the voltage of conventional magnetron sputtering coating devices will decrease when working at constant power, resulting in an increase in magnetic field current. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram (internal structure sectional view) of the utility model.

[0017] Figure 2 yes Figure 1 Left view of .

[0018] Figure 3 yes Figure 2 A cross-sectional view of the internal structure along the transverse direction.

[0019] Explanation of the serial numbers in the figure: 1 flat target connecting flange, 2 flat target insulating flange, 3 target body seat, 4 target body, 5 magnet shift adjustment space, 6 cold plate, 7 magnetron target material, 8 target material pressure frame, 9 conductive electrode plate, 10 external hexagon screw, 11 connecting back plate, 12 magnet fixing seat, 13 target body water inlet and outlet pipes, 14 water inlet and outlet pipe insulating guide sleeve, 15 adjustable magnet, 16 cylinder fixing plate, 17 cylinder bracket, 18 three-axis cylinder, 19 cylinder guide shaft, 20 cylinder extension scale rod, 21 extension scale identification seat, 22 cylinder limit adjustment plate, 23 cylinder limit fixing shaft, 24 limit adjustment screw, 25 cylinder limit rod guide seat, 26 cylinder extension limit rod, 27 rod connection support, 28 three-axis connecting plate, 29 cylinder transition plate, 30 cylinder plate support column. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0020] according to Figures 1 to 3 The specific structure of the utility model is described in detail. The movable magnetic field magnetron target includes a planar target connecting flange 1, a target body seat 3 is arranged on the front side of the planar target connecting flange 1, a planar target insulating flange 2 is arranged between the target body seat 3 and the planar target connecting flange 1, and a conductive electrode plate 9 is arranged on the rear side of the planar target connecting flange 1; the conductive electrode plate 9, the planar target connecting flange 1, the planar target insulating flange 2 and the target body seat 3 are respectively fixedly connected by a plurality of hexagonal screws 10. A target body 4 is arranged on the front side of the target body seat 3, a magnetron target material 7 is arranged on the target body 4, an intercooling plate 6 is arranged between the magnetron target material 7 and the target body 4, and the upper and lower ends of the circulating cooling channel formed by the intercooling plate 6 and the target body 4 are respectively connected to the target body inlet and outlet water pipes 13. A target material pressing frame 8 is arranged between the edge of the magnetron target material 7 and the target body 4 and the intercooling plate 6, so as to facilitate the positioning and connection of the magnetron target material 7 on the target body 4 and facilitate the replacement of the magnetron target material 7.

[0021] An inlet and outlet water pipe insulating guide sleeve 14 is arranged on the outside of the target body inlet and outlet water pipe 13, and through holes are also arranged on the magnet fixing seat 12 and the connecting back plate 11 at positions corresponding to the target body inlet and outlet water pipe 13. Then, the coolant is circulated in the circulating cooling channel formed by the intercooling plate 6 and the target body 4 through the target body inlet and outlet water pipes 13 at both ends, and then when the coolant flows through the inside of the target body 4, it exchanges heat with the magnetron target material 7 in the working state; and the target body inlet and outlet water pipe 13 with the inlet and outlet water pipe insulating guide sleeve 14 on the outside is used to stably guide the connecting back plate 11, the magnet fixing seat 12 and the adjustable magnet 15 thereon to move back and forth with the extension and retraction of the driving cylinder.

[0022] The planar target connecting flange 1, the target body seat 3 and the target body 4 enclose a magnet shift adjustment space 5 for adjusting the position of the adjustable magnet 15 forward and backward. A magnet fixing seat 12 is arranged in the magnet shift adjustment space 5, and the adjustable magnet 15 is arranged on the magnet fixing seat 12. The rear part of the magnet fixing seat 12 extends to the outside of the connecting flange through the opening on the rear side of the magnet shift adjustment space 5; and, a connecting back plate 11 is also arranged at the rear part of the magnet fixing seat 12, and the connecting back plate 11 is connected to the telescopic end of the driving cylinder used to drive the magnet to move through the cylinder transition plate 29.

[0023] The driving cylinder can be a three-axis cylinder 18, the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder 18 is connected to the cylinder fixing plate 16 through the cylinder bracket 17, and the cylinder fixing plate 16 is fixedly connected to the rear side of the flat target connecting flange 1 through a plurality of groups of cylinder plate support columns 30; the telescopic rod in the middle of the three-axis cylinder 18 and the ends of the cylinder guide shafts 19 on both sides are respectively connected to the cylinder transition plate 29 through the three-axis connecting plate 28 that penetrates the middle of the cylinder fixing plate 16; and then, through the extension and retraction of the telescopic rod of the three-axis cylinder 18, the connecting back plate 11 connected to the cylinder transition plate 29 and the adjustable magnet 15 thereon are driven to reciprocate in the magnet shift adjustment space 5, so as to realize the relative movement of the magnetic field and the magnetron target material 7, effectively improve the magnetic field distribution on the target surface, so that after long-term use, the surface of the target material is no longer formed with a narrow and deep etching groove, but a larger range of uniform etching area, thereby improving the stability of the sputtering process.

[0024] At the same time, the rear end of the three-axis cylinder 18 is provided with a cylinder limit fixing shaft 23, the end of the cylinder limit fixing shaft 23 is provided with a cylinder limit adjustment plate 22, and two sets of limit adjustment screws 24 are provided on the cylinder limit adjustment plate 22, and the limit adjustment screws 24 are rotatably provided on the cylinder limit adjustment plate 22; and the ends of the limit adjustment screws 24 are limitedly connected with the ends of the cylinder guide shaft 19 at the corresponding positions. Therefore, the limit adjustment screws 24 provided on the cylinder limit adjustment plate 22 are used to mechanically limit the retracted positions of the cylinder guide shaft 19 and the telescopic rod of the three-axis cylinder 18, so as to limit the position of the adjustable magnet 15 moving backward. In addition, a cylinder extension limit rod 26 arranged along the cylinder extension direction is provided on the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder 18, and the cylinder extension limit rod 26 is fixedly connected to the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder 18 through a rod connecting support 27; accordingly, a cylinder limit rod guide seat 25 is fixedly provided at the end of the cylinder guide shaft 19, and the cylinder limit rod guide seat 25 is slidably sleeved on the cylinder extension limit rod 26, and a limiting flange is provided on the cylinder extension limit rod 26; the cylinder guide shaft 19 and the telescopic rod of the three-axis cylinder 18 are mechanically limited by the cooperation and limitation of the cylinder limit rod guide seat 25 at the end of the cylinder guide shaft 19 and the limiting flange on the cylinder extension limit rod 26, thereby limiting the forward moving position of the adjustable magnet 15.

[0025] In addition, a cylinder extension scale rod 20 arranged along the extension and retraction direction of the cylinder can be provided on the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder 18 (it can be understood that an identification scale can also be directly provided on the existing cylinder extension limit rod 26 instead), and an identification scale is provided on the cylinder extension scale rod 20, and the cylinder extension scale rod 20 is fixedly connected to the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder 18 through a rod connecting support 27; accordingly, an extension scale identification seat 21 is fixedly provided at the end of the cylinder guide shaft 19, and the extension scale identification seat 21 is slidably sleeved on the cylinder extension scale rod 20; and then the extension scale identification seat 21 at the end of the cylinder guide shaft 19 and the identification scale on the cylinder extension scale rod 20 are used to display the extension distance of the telescopic rod of the three-axis cylinder 18, so as to facilitate the adjustment of the adjustable magnet 15.

[0026] When the magnetic field pushes inward (close to the target), the horizontal magnetic field on the target surface is enhanced and the target voltage is reduced; when the magnetic field pushes outward (away from the target), the horizontal magnetic field on the target surface is reduced and the target voltage is increased. The magnitude of the horizontal magnetic induction intensity also has an important influence on the sputtering rate and film performance. Within a certain range, at the same sputtering rate, the smaller the horizontal magnetic induction intensity, the higher the power required. High power will generate more heat, which may cause problems such as target fragmentation. The greater the horizontal magnetic induction intensity, the stronger the ability to constrain electrons, which will increase the ionization rate, power efficiency and sputtering rate; however, since the cyclotron radius of electrons is inversely proportional to the magnetic induction intensity, after exceeding a certain range, the cyclotron radius of electrons is reduced, and the contribution of electrons to enhanced ionization is reduced, so that the sputtering power efficiency no longer increases, and even leads to a decrease in target utilization. Therefore, the front and rear positions of the magnetic field adjustment need to be at a critical point, that is, not too far forward or too far back.

[0027] During the operation of the planar target, when the position of the adjustable magnet 15 (magnet assembly) needs to be adjusted, the three-axis cylinder 18 of the movable magnetic field magnetron target is retracted outward or extended inward to a certain scale according to the given air pressure, and the cylinder limit adjustment plate 22 controls the maximum retraction scale, and the magnetic field depth is controlled by the cylinder extension limit rod 26, and the specific position is displayed by the cylinder extension scale rod 20. After the adjustment is completed, it is fixed by the cylinder limit rod guide seat 25; and then the expansion and contraction of the three-axis cylinder 18 is used to drive the adjustable magnet 15 to move forward and backward to change the distribution of magnetic lines of force on the surface of the magnetron target material 7. In addition, in order to make the planar target work normally, the cooling of the target material is also very important; the coolant (cooling water) flows in from the target body inlet and outlet pipe 13 at one end, enters the intermediate cooling plate 6 through the target body 4 to cool the target body 4, and the coolant exchanges heat with the magnetron target material 7 in the working state when flowing through the inside of the target body 4, and then flows out through the target body inlet and outlet pipe 13 at the other end. Thus, by changing the relative position of the adjustable magnet 15 and the magnetron target 7, the distribution range of the magnetic field lines is changed, and the magnetic field strength on the target surface is changed. The design of the movable magnetic field magnetron target provides a new process mode for magnetron sputtering coating, namely: at the beginning of the deposition stage, a higher ion beam current is obtained by pushing in the magnetic field to improve the film adhesion and coating rate, and the ion beam current size can be adjusted by changing the magnetic field push depth at any time; and when depositing gradient films or multilayer films, the magnetic field push depth can be changed according to different film process parameters to achieve the best combination of various film performances.

Claims

1. A movable magnetic field magnetron target, comprising a planar target connecting flange (1), characterized in that: A target body seat (3) is arranged at the front side of the planar target connection flange (1); a planar target insulating flange (2) is arranged between the target body seat (3) and the planar target connection flange (1); a target body (4) is arranged at the front side of the target body seat (3); a magnetron target material (7) is arranged on the target body (4); an intercooling plate (6) is arranged between the magnetron target material (7) and the target body (4); and both ends of a circulating cooling channel formed by the intercooling plate (6) and the target body (4) are respectively connected to the target body inlet and outlet water pipes (13); and a conductive conductive material is arranged at the rear side of the planar target connection flange (1). An electrode plate (9); a magnet fixing seat (12) is arranged in a magnet displacement adjustment space (5) formed by the planar target connection flange (1), the target body seat (3) and the target body (4); an adjustable magnet (15) is arranged on the magnet fixing seat (12); the rear portion of the magnet fixing seat (12) extends to the outside of the connection flange through an opening on the rear side of the magnet displacement adjustment space (5); and a connection back plate (11) is arranged at the rear portion of the magnet fixing seat (12); the connection back plate (11) is connected to the telescopic end of the driving cylinder through a cylinder transition plate (29).

2. The movable magnetic field magnetron target according to claim 1, characterized in that: A target material pressing frame (8) is provided between the edge of the magnetron target material (7), the target body (4) and the intermediate cooling plate (6).

3. The movable magnetic field magnetron target according to claim 1, characterized in that: An inlet and outlet water pipe insulating guide sleeve (14) is provided on the outside of the target body inlet and outlet water pipe (13), and through holes are also provided on the magnet fixing seat (12) and the connecting back plate (11) at positions corresponding to the target body inlet and outlet water pipe (13).

4. The movable magnetic field magnetron target according to claim 1, characterized in that: The driving cylinder is a three-axis cylinder (18), the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder (18) is connected to the cylinder fixing plate (16) through a cylinder bracket (17), and the cylinder fixing plate (16) is fixedly connected to the rear side of the planar target connecting flange (1) through a plurality of groups of cylinder plate support columns (30); the ends of the telescopic rod and the cylinder guide shaft (19) of the three-axis cylinder (18) are respectively connected to the cylinder transition plate (29) through a three-axis connecting plate (28) that passes through the middle of the cylinder fixing plate (16).

5. The movable magnetic field magnetron target according to claim 4, characterized in that: A cylinder limit fixing shaft (23) is disposed at the rear end of the three-axis cylinder (18), a cylinder limit adjustment plate (22) is disposed at the end of the cylinder limit fixing shaft (23), a limit adjustment screw (24) is disposed on the cylinder limit adjustment plate (22), the limit adjustment screw (24) is rotatably disposed on the cylinder limit adjustment plate (22), and an end of the limit adjustment screw (24) is limit-connected to an end of a cylinder guide shaft (19) at a corresponding position.

6. The movable magnetic field magnetron target according to claim 4, characterized in that: The three-axis cylinder (18) is provided with a cylinder extension limit rod (26) arranged along the cylinder extension direction, and the cylinder extension limit rod (26) is fixedly connected to the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder (18) through a rod connection support (27). Correspondingly, a cylinder limit rod guide seat (25) is fixedly provided at the end of the cylinder guide shaft (19), and the cylinder limit rod guide seat (25) is slidably sleeved on the cylinder extension limit rod (26), and a limit flange is provided on the cylinder extension limit rod (26).

7. The movable magnetic field magnetron target according to claim 4, characterized in that: The three-axis cylinder (18) is provided with a cylinder extension scale rod (20) arranged along the cylinder extension direction, and the cylinder extension scale rod (20) is provided with a marking scale, and the cylinder extension scale rod (20) is fixedly connected to the cylinder body of the three-axis cylinder (18) through a rod connection support (27), and accordingly, an extension scale marking seat (21) is fixedly provided at the end of the cylinder guide shaft (19), and the extension scale marking seat (21) is slidably sleeved on the cylinder extension scale rod (20).

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