Abstract: A sputter coating source has separate annular targets spaced outwardly from each other around a central axis. Magnetic field generating means are provided to establish magnetic field lines over each target around an annular path. Each target has its own separate magnetic field generating means including an electromagnet having a separately controllable power supply whereby the strength of the magnetic field over each target may be separately controlled. The targets are electrically separated from each other, and each target has a separately controllable power supply whereby the plasma power for each target may be separately controlled. More than two separate targets may be employed, and the various targets may be positioned at different distances from the substrate. The targets may be made of magnetic material.

Abstract: An elevator structure is actuated to remove wafers individually out of a storage cassette to an elevated delivery position. The elevator is a lift blade with an arcuate upper end shaped to match the curvature of the wafers, and a groove within this end adapted to match the thickness of a wafer and retain a wafer edgewise. A wafer-holding chuck on a chuck assembly is adapted to receive a wafer from the elevator when the elevator is in the elevated delivery position. The chuck assembly is movable from the delivery position to a remote position where the chuck presents the wafer to a support member. The support member is provided with an aperture and a plurality of deformable wafer-holding clips spaced around the aperture. The chuck assembly includes a pneumatic cylinder capable of contacting a portion of each clip to urge same to an open position. The invention includes an arrangement in which the chuck is mounted on a chuck assembly in the form of a door for sealing an opening in a process chamber.

Abstract: A magnetron sputter device includes a first target having an emitting surface and a second target having a concave emitting target defined by a side wall of a frustum of cone. Separate plasma discharges for the targets are confined by separate electromagnet derived magnetic fields, coupled to the targets by pole pieces.

Abstract: A diffusion pump is operated by controlling the rate at which vapor is evaporated from a pool in response to an indication of the effectiveness of a fluid in cooling a condensation surface for the vapor as derived by sensors for the temperatures of the pool and along a temperature gradient from the pool to a cooling coil for the condensation surface. When the sensors indicate that the vapor is not effectively cooling the surface, liquid is vaporized from the pool, but at a slower rate than when the fluid is effective in cooling the surface. To increase the life of a brass strap on the temperature gradient, opposite ends of the strap are connected to a cooling coil for the condensation surface and a stainless steel block connected to a well in which is located an electric heater for vaporizing the oil from the pool.

Abstract: A substrate having two parallel planar faces and an edge with a groove is simultaneously coated on both sides in a vacuum chamber. The substrate is raised, lowered and held on edge while the parallel faces are vertically disposed by a blade inserted into the groove so that while the substrate is coated an unobstructed path exists for the coating material to the faces.

Abstract: A novel magnetron sputter coating source is disclosed in which magnetic sputter targets containing relatively large inventories of usable material may be employed. This coating source may also be used efficiently and effectively with sputter target materials having properties which range from nonmagnetic to highly ferromagnetic. Use of an electromagnetic coil with a widely adjustable energizing current, rather than permanent magnets, allows a wide range of magnetic properties to be accommodated. Electrical impedance of the glow discharge is readily controlled using the current flow through the electromagnetic coil, allowing, for example, operation at desired values of voltage and current throughout the life of the sputter target. In addition, a momentary increase in electromagnet coil current can be used to achieve ignition of the glow discharge at a desired sputter gas operating pressure which is below the sputter gas pressure at which the glow discharge can normally be readily ignited.

Abstract: A system for handling and individually processing a plurality of thin substrates is described. The system includes a main chamber, entrance and exit load locks, a plurality of processing stations, a load lock load/unload means, a vertical transport means, and a horizontal transport means. In one embodiment the processing stations are deployed in a U-shaped configuration, allowing the entrance and exit load locks to be positioned at the same end of the machine. Idle stations between processing stations may also be employed. The substrates are vertically oriented and are raised and lowered into and out of load locks and processing stations by means of dedicated lift blades. Substrates are transferred within the main chamber from lift blades of one station to lift blades of an adjacent station by means of substrate carriers affixed to a walking beam mechanism.

Abstract: The magnetic field of a magnetron sputter coating apparatus is controlled in response to measurements of plasma parameters to control deposition parameters, such as sputter deposition rate and material deposition thickness profile. From time to time the apparatus is standardized to change preset values for parameters of the plasma to manage the deposition parameters.

Abstract: An optimized annular sputter target for use in a sputter coating source has a cross sectional shape comprising a front surface from which material is to be sputtered, an outer rim and an inner rim, a back surface generally opposite said sputter surface, said outer rim having a first portion intersecting said back surface and a second portion intersecting said front sputter surface, said second portion extends outwardly from said first portion, said outer rim is substantially longer in a direction parallel to the axis of said annular target than is said inner rim, and said inner rim slopes outwardly from its intersection with said front sputter surface.

Abstract: A method of sputter depositing a desired film thickness profile on a substrate is accomplished by depositing material onto a substrate at spaced apart coating stations whereby a substrate at any of said stations is not coated by the sputter coating action at any of the other sputter stations. The substrate is held stationary during complete sputtering at each station. A blocking shield is placed in fixed position between the substrate and the sputter coating source at one or more of the stations. The duration of sputter coating time at one station may be different than at another station.

Abstract: A first order achromatic magnetic deflection system for use in conjunction with a charged particle accelerator, is realized from a stepped gap manget wherein a charged particle propagated through the system is subject to at least two adjacent homogenous magnetic fields in traversing one-half of a symmetric trajectory through the system.

Abstract: Apparatus for compensating for asymmetric signatures in semiconductor processes. An asymmetric thickness profile is obtained in a sputter coating system by using a shield placed in an asymmetric position with respect to the center of a symmetric sputtering system such as a circularly symmetric sputtering system. A sputter coated layer is obtained which has the asymmetric character of the shield and its placement. When the substrate is placed in subsequent equipment having asymmetric etch characteristics, the resultant film has a uniform thickness or a known contour.

Abstract: The arbitrary contouring of thickness of a sputter-deposited film is made possible by a blocking means having a primary blocking shield and an ancillary blocking shield. The primary blocking shield intercepts atoms sputtered directly from the cathode target by line-of-sight transport. The ancillary blocking shield extends downwardly from the side of the primary blocking shield which is placed closest to the substrate. The ancillary blocking shield intercepts atoms sputtered from the cathode which by intervening gas collisions have been redirected to travel underneath the primary blocking shield. Precise tailoring of the thickness profile of the coating on the substrate is thereby provided and the quality of the composite film is maintained. The method for contouring the thickness of sputter coated layers comprises sputter coating portions of the film at successive stations. By employing the improved blocking shield at selected stations, the film in the aggregate may have the desired thickness contour.

Abstract: Magnetron sputter coating sources are usually designed for vacuum deposition of nonmagnetic materials. Such sources employ nonmagnetic sputter targets. In some cases it is desired to use the same magnetron sources to dispense magnetic materials. It is therefore desired to use magnetic sputter targets interchangeably with nonmagnetic sputter targets. The novel design approach of the present invention employs a magnetic sputter target comprising first and second magnetic target portions separated by a gap. These magnetic target portions serve as virtual pole pieces. The fringing magnetic field adjacent the gap serves to position and enhance the glow discharge. By controlling the configurations of these virtual pole pieces and the gap between them, the glow discharge and the corresponding target erosion pattern may, within limits, be shaped as desired. The magnetic target portions need not be magnetically saturated.

Abstract: In a standing-wave coupled-cavity linear particle accelerator the energy of the emergent particles can be adjusted by making the accelerating fields in one section of the accelerator different from those in another section into which the rf drive power is introduced. To do this the adjoining end cavities of the two sections are coupled through a "side" cavity which is not traversed by the particle beam. The coupling coefficients of the side cavity to the two accelerating cavities are made unequal to create the difference in accelerating cavity fields. Asymmetrical coupling is realized by varying the extension of center conductor posts into the side cavity by means of a vacuum sealed mechanism for moving the center posts while maintaining microwave current connection between the center posts and the side cavity.

Abstract: Equipment is monitored for leaks by a mass spectrometer responsive to a low molecular weight test gas. A diffusion pump has a foreline and an inlet connected in fluid flow relation with the spectrometer. A three position valve assembly has ports connected to a roughing pump line, to an inlet conduit for receiving test gas leaking through equipment, and to the foreline.

Abstract: This invention relates to coating of substrates in a vacuum system. A beam of molecules incident upon a molecular beam converter is transformed into a molecular beam flowing from the converter toward a substrate to be coated, or on which a layer is to be grown epitaxially. The incident beam is directed onto a heated impingement surface. In most embodiments the impingement surface generally faces the substrate to be coated, and the incident beam strikes the surface from the substrate side. A heating means maintains the impingement surface at a designated temperature. The heating means is separated and shielded from the impingement surface to avoid introducing contaminants from the heating means into the converted molecular beam, and also to avoid adverse physical and chemical effects on the heating means caused by the incident beam and its dissociation products.

Abstract: In high rate sputter coating sources, it is generally necessary to liquid cool the sputter targets. In one type of source, a cooled wall of a cathode assembly is closely adjacent a sidewall of the sputter target. During normal operation the sidewall of the target expands thermally into tight contact with the cooled wall, whereby cooling of the target is effected without the need for bonding the target to the cooled wall using a solder or other adhesive. Thus, replacement of worn conventional targets is a relatively simple procedure. When the targets are made of certain special materials, such as fragile materials or materials with low coefficients of thermal expansion, target warping, cracking or melting can occur. Such problems are overcome or alleviated by the novel design approach of the present invention, which employs a sputter target assembly in place of a conventional target.

Abstract: In a resonant chain of coupled cavities such as used in a standing-wave linear particle accelerator it is often desirable to change the field strength in some cavities relative to some others. For example, if the output particle energy of an accelerator is changed by varying the fields of all cavities, the distribution of energies of output particles is disturbed. This distribution is largely controlled by the fields in the first group of cavities traversed by the particle beam. According to the invention, the fields can remain constant in the first group and be varied in following cavities. This is done by varying the distribution of electromagnetic field in one cavity asymmetrically with respect to the preceding and the following cavity. The asymmetric coupling produces different acceleration fields in one part of acceleration structure relative to another part.

Abstract: A multiple threaded fastener assembly includes at least two hingedly interconnected members, each having a threaded bore therein constituting a nut for coaction with threaded bolts. The bolts operatively engage workpiece openings. Tightening of respective sets of interengaged bolts and nuts of the fastener assembly is effected by a single wrench operation since the torque or restraining force on one member is provided through the connection to the other member. Detents and indicating indicia may be provided for positive locating action of the members.