MAGNETRON SPUTTERING APPARATUS AND MAGNETRON SPUTTERING METHOD

• US 20110114473A1
• Filed: 02/06/2009
• Published: 05/19/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 02/13/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shibaura Mechatronics Corporation
• Original Assignee: Shibaura Mechatronics Corporation, Sony Disc & Digital Solutions Incorporated (Sony Group Corp.)
• Inventors: Iwasaki, Masaaki, Sato, Takehiro, Oda, Yoshifumi
• Granted Patent: US 8,663,432 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 204/192.12
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/3485 using pulsed power to the target
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/35 by application of a magnetic field, e.g. magnetron sputtering C23C14/3457 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: C23C 14/54 Controlling or regulating the coating process
• CPC Class Codes: G11B 7/266 Sputtering or spin-coating layers sputtering in general C23C14/24; spin-coating in general B05D1/005

Abstract

A magnetron sputtering apparatus of the invention includes: a sputtering chamber in which a target can be opposed to an object to be subjected to film formation; a gas introduction port facing the sputtering chamber; a magnet provided outside the sputtering chamber and opposite to the target and being rotatable about a rotation center which is eccentric with respect to center of the magnet; a sensor configured to detect a circumferential position of the magnet in a plane of rotation of the magnet; and a controller configured to start voltage application to the target to cause electrical discharge in the sputtering chamber on the basis of the circumferential position of the rotating magnet and gas pressure distribution in the sputtering chamber.

Claims

1. A magnetron sputtering apparatus comprising:

a sputtering chamber in which a target can be opposed to an object to be subjected to film formation;

a gas introduction port facing the sputtering chamber;

a magnet provided outside the sputtering chamber and opposite to the target and being rotatable about a rotation center which is eccentric with respect to center of the magnet;

a sensor configured to detect a circumferential position of the magnet in a plane of rotation of the magnet; and

a controller configured to start voltage application to the target to cause electrical discharge in the sputtering chamber on the basis of the circumferential position of the rotating magnet and gas pressure distribution in the sputtering chamber.

2. The magnetron sputtering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller starts the voltage application to the target when the center of the magnet is located on a region in the sputtering chamber in which the gas pressure is lower than at the gas introduction port.

3. The magnetron sputtering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller starts the voltage application to the target when the center of the magnet is located on a region farther from a position of the gas introduction port than a line passing through the rotation center and being orthogonal in the plane of rotation of the magnet to a line connecting between the position of the gas introduction port and the rotation center of the magnet.

4. The magnetron sputtering apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the controller ends the voltage application to the target on the basis of the circumferential position of the rotating magnet and the gas pressure distribution in the sputtering chamber.

5. The magnetron sputtering apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the controller ends the voltage application to the target when the center of the magnet is located on a region farther from a position of the gas introduction port than a line passing through the rotation center and being orthogonal in the plane of rotation of the magnet to a line connecting between the position of the gas introduction port and the rotation center of the magnet.

6. The magnetron sputtering apparatus according to claim 4, wherein the controller ends the voltage application to the target when the center of the magnet is located at an identical position to time when the voltage application to the target is started.

7. A magnetron sputtering method comprising:

opposing a target to an object to be subjected to film formation in a sputtering chamber;

introducing a sputtering gas into the sputtering chamber from a gas introduction port facing the sputtering chamber, and rotating a magnet about a rotation center which is eccentric with respect to center of the magnet, the magnet being provided outside the sputtering chamber and opposite to the target; and

starting voltage application to the target to cause electrical discharge in the sputtering chamber on the basis of a circumferential position of the rotating magnet in a plane of rotation of the magnet and gas pressure distribution in the sputtering chamber.

8. The magnetron sputtering method according to claim 7, wherein the voltage application to the target is started when the center of the magnet is located on a region in the sputtering chamber in which the gas pressure is lower than at the gas introduction port.

9. The magnetron sputtering method according to claim 7, wherein the voltage application to the target is started when the center of the magnet is located on a region farther from a position of the gas introduction port than a line passing through the rotation center and being orthogonal in the plane of rotation of the magnet to a line connecting between the position of the gas introduction port and the rotation center of the magnet.

10. The magnetron sputtering method according to claim 7, wherein the voltage application to the target is ended on the basis of the circumferential position of the rotating magnet in the plane of rotation and the gas pressure distribution in the sputtering chamber.

11. The magnetron sputtering method according to claim 10, wherein the voltage application to the target is ended when the center of the magnet is located on a region farther from a position of the gas introduction port than a line passing through the rotation center and being orthogonal in the plane of rotation of the magnet to a line connecting between the position of the gas introduction port and the rotation center of the magnet.

12. The magnetron sputtering method according to claim 10, wherein the voltage application to the target is ended when the center of the magnet is located at an identical position to time when the voltage application to the target is started.