Dielectric-layer-coated substrate and installation for production thereof

• US 20060275612A1
• Filed: 06/28/2004
• Published: 12/07/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 06/27/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Saint-Gobain Glass France (Compagnie De Saint-Gobain)
• Original Assignee: Saint-Gobain Glass France (Compagnie De Saint-Gobain)
• Inventors: Nadaud, Nicole, Loergen, Marcus, Hofrichter, Alfred, Jansen, Manfred, Fischer, Klaus, Rousseau, Jean-Paul, Baubet, Carole, Mattman, Eric, Giron, Jean-Christophe
• Application Number:
  US10/562,121
• Publication Number:
  US 20060275612A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 428/432
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10174 Coatings of a metallic or dielectric material on a constituent layer of glass or polymer
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/22 with other inorganic material C03C17/34, C03C17/44 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/225 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/245 by deposition from the vapour phase
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/2456 Coating containing TiO2
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/36 at least one coating being a metal
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3613 Coatings of type glass/inorganic compound/metal/inorganic compound/metal/other
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3618 Coatings of type glass/inorganic compound/other inorganic layers, at least one layer being metallic
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3626 one layer at least containing a nitride, oxynitride, boronitride or carbonitride
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3644 the metal being silver
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3652 the coating stack containing at least one sacrificial layer to protect the metal from oxidation
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/366 Low-emissivity or solar control coatings
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2217/21 Oxides
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2217/281 Nitrides
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2217/78 Coatings specially designed to be durable, e.g. scratch-resistant
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2218/154 by sputtering
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 2218/155 by reactive sputtering
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/0052 Bombardment of substrates by reactive ion beams
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/08 Oxides C23C14/10 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/086 of zinc, germanium, cadmium, indium, tin, thallium or bismuth
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/3442 : using an ion beam
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/5833 : Ion beam bombardment
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 2211/446 : Electromagnetic shielding means; Antistatic means

Abstract

The invention relates to a substrate (1), especially a glass substrate, coated with at least one dielectric thin-film layer deposited by sputtering, especially magnetically enhanced sputtering and preferably reactive sputtering in the presence of oxygen and/or nitrogen, with exposure to at least one ion beam (3) coming from an ion source (4), characterized in that said dielectric layer exposed to the ion beam is crystallized.

Claims

1. A substrate which may be a glass substrate, coated with at least one dielectric thin-film layer deposited by sputtering, which may be magnetically enhanced sputtering or reactive sputtering in the presence of oxygen and/or nitrogen, with exposure to at least one ion beam coming from an ion source, wherein said dielectric layer exposed to the ion beam is crystallized.

2. The substrate as claimed in claim 1, wherein said dielectric layer deposited on the substrate by sputtering with exposure to the ion beam has a very low roughness.

3. The substrate as claimed in claim 2, wherein the dielectric layer exposed to the ion beam has a roughness at least 20% less than that of the same dielectric layer not exposed to the ion beam.

4. The substrate as claimed in claim 1, wherein said dielectric layer comprises a metal oxide or silicon oxide, which may be stoichiometric or nonstoichiometric, or comprises a metal nitride or oxynitride or silicon nitride or oxynitride.

5. The substrate as claimed in claim 1, wherein said dielectric layer comprises an oxide of at least one element selected from the group consisting of silicon, zinc, tantalum, titanium, tin, aluminum, zirconium, niobium, indium, cerium, and tungsten.

6. The substrate as claimed in claim 5, wherein the layer comprises zinc oxide and has a refractive index of less than or equal to 1.95.

7. The substrate as claimed in claim 5, wherein the layer comprises zinc oxide and has a degree of crystallinity of greater than 90.

8. The substrate as claimed in claim 1, wherein said dielectric layer comprises silicon nitride or oxynitride.

9. The substrate as claimed in claim 1, wherein said layer has an argon content of around 0.2 to 0.6 at %.

10. The substrate as claimed in claim 1, wherein said layer has an iron content of less than or equal to 3 at %.

11. The substrate as claimed in claim 1, wherein said substrate is coated with a multilayer in which a silver layer is placed on top of said dielectric layer exposed to the ion beam.

12. The substrate as claimed in claim 11, wherein another dielectric layer is placed on top of the silver layer.

13. The substrate as claimed in claim 11, wherein the multilayer includes at least two silver layers.

14. The substrate as claimed in claim 11, wherein said substrate has a surface resistance R_□

of less than 6 Ω

/□

.

15. A glazing assembly which may be a double-glazing or laminated glazing assembly, comprising at least one substrate as claimed in claim 1.

29. An installation for deposition on a substrate, which may be a glass substrate, for the manufacture of the substrate as claimed in claim 1, which includes a sputtering chamber in which at least one dielectric thin-film layer is deposited on the substrate by sputtering, which may be magnetically enhanced sputtering or reactive sputtering in the presence of oxygen and/or nitrogen, with exposure to at least one ion beam, wherein the installation includes, in the sputtering chamber at least one linear ion source capable of creating at least one ion beam.

30. The installation as claimed in claim 29, wherein a linear ion source is placed so as to direct an ion beam onto the substrate, which may be along a direction making a nonzero angle, or an angle of 10 to 80°

, with the surface of the substrate.

31. The installation as claimed in claim 29, wherein a linear ion source is placed so as to direct an ion beam onto at least one cathode, which may be along a direction making a nonzero angle, or an angle of 10 to 80°

, with the surface of this cathode.

16. A process for deposition on a substrate, in which at least one dielectric thin-film layer is deposited on the substrate by sputtering, which may be magnetically enhanced sputtering or reactive sputtering in the presence of oxygen and/or nitrogen, in a sputtering chamber, with exposure to at least one ion beam coming from an ion source, wherein an ion beam is created in the sputtering chamber and in that said dielectric layer exposed to the ion beam undergoes a crystallization step.

17. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein an oxygen ion beam is created.

18. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein an ion beam is created with an energy of between 200 and 2000 eV.

19. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein said dielectric layer deposited on the substrate by sputtering with exposure to the ion beam has a very low roughness.

20. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein exposure to an ion beam takes place simultaneously with the deposition of the layer by sputtering.

21. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein exposure to an ion beam takes place sequentially after the layer has been deposited by sputtering.

22. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein an ion beam is directed onto the substrate, which may be along a direction making a nonzero angle with the surface of the substrate, or along a direction making an angle of 10 to 80°

with the surface of the substrate.

23. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein an ion beam is directed onto at least one cathode, which may be along a direction making a nonzero angle with the surface of the cathode, or along a direction making an angle of 10 to 80°

with the surface of this cathode.

24. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein the ion beam is created from a linear source.

25. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein at least one functional layer, which may be one based on silver, is deposited on said dielectric layer and in that said functional layer undergoes a crystallization step.

26. The process as claimed in claim 25, wherein the at least one functional layer is based on silver and the size of the crystallites of the silver layer is increased by around 30 to 40%.

27. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein the dielectric layer is based on zinc oxide.

28. The process as claimed in claim 16, wherein an ion beam is created in the sputtering chamber from a linear ion source simultaneously with the deposition of the layer by sputtering and in that the deposited layer then undergoes an additional treatment with at least one other ion beam.