Abstract: In a sputtering target comprising at least indium oxide and zinc oxide, the atomic ratio represented by In/(In+Zn) is set to a value within the range of 0.75 to 0.97, a hexagonal layered compound represented by In2O3(ZnO)m wherein m is an integer of 2 to 20 is contained, and the crystal grain size of the hexagonal layered compound is set to a value of 5 &mgr;m or less.

Abstract: A hollow cylindrical target for a cathode sputtering unit with a hollow cylindrical sputtering material and a target holder is disclosed. The sputtering material has an annular cross section and concentrically surrounds a longitudinal segment of the target holder. The target holder extends out of the sputtering material at least at one end of the target to allow connection to the cathode sputtering unit. The at least one part of the target holder that extends from the sputtering material is a single part that can be detached from the target by at least one screw fitting.

Abstract: A method of improving the temperature control of a clamped substrate mounted on a substrate support that is biased, the substrate support having a passage therethrough to permit a flow of backside gas for heating or cooling the substrate, whereby the pressure of the backside gas is maintained at at least 15 torr. A high gas pressure improves the thickness uniformity of processing across the substrate. For plasma deposition of sputtered seed layers, the morphology of the seed layer is improved near the edge of the substrate and the uniformity of the layer across the substrate is also improved.

Abstract: An aluminum alloy sputter target having a sputter target face for sputtering the sputter target is provided. The sputter target face has a textured-metastable grain structure. The textured-metastable grain structure has a grain orientation ratio of at least 35 percent (200) orientation. The textured-metastable grain structure is stable during sputtering of the sputter target. The textured-metastable grain structure has a grain size of less than 5 &mgr;m. The method forms aluminum alloy sputter targets by first cooling an aluminum alloy target blank to a temperature of less than −50° C. Then deforming the cooled aluminum alloy target blank introduces plastic strain into the target blank and reduces the grain size of the grains to form a textured-metastable grain structure. Finally, finishing the aluminum alloy target blank forms a finished sputter target that maintains the textured-metastable grain structure of the finished sputter target.

Abstract: Production of a thin-film system containing at least one ultra-thin film, preferentially in the film thickness range from 1 to 10 nm, which is deposited by plasma-aided chemical or physical vapor-phase deposition using magnetron discharges. The method is characterized in that in the course of deposition of the ultra-thin film the power output is introduced into the plasma in the form of a controlled number of power pulses and that the average power output during the pulse-on time is set higher by a factor of at least 3 than the averaged power output over the entire coating time during deposition of the ultra-thin film.

Abstract: A method for protecting high temperature stainless steel from coking and corrosion at elevated temperatures in corrosive environments, such as during ethylene production, by coating the stainless steel with an overlay coating of MCrAlX in which M is nickel, cobalt, iron or a mixture thereof and X is yttrium, hafnium, zirconium, lanthanum or combination thereof. The overlay coating and stainless steel substrate are heat-treated to metallurgically bond the overlay coating to the substrate and to form a multiphased microstructure. The overlay coating preferably is aluminized by depositing a layer of aluminum thereon and subjecting the resulting coating to oxidation to form an alumina surface layer. An intermediary aluminum-containing diffusion coating may be deposited directly onto the stainless steel substrate prior to deposition of the overlay coating to form a protective interlayer between the stainless steel substrate and overlay coating.

Abstract: An apparatus and method for controlling and optimizing a non-planar target shape of a sputtering magnetron system are employed to minimize the redeposition of the sputtered material and optimize target erosion. The methodology is based on the integration of sputtered material from each point of the target according to its solid angle view of the rest of the target. The prospective target's geometry is optimized by analytically comparing and evaluating the methodology's results of one target geometry against that of another geometry, or by simply altering the first geometry and recalculating and comparing the results of the first geometry against the altered geometry. The target geometries may be of many different shapes including trapezoidal, cylindrical, parabolic, and elliptical, depending upon the optimum process parameters desired.

Abstract: A metal film made of titanium is formed on a surface of a wafer. Then, the metal film is subjected to a patterning process to selectively remove undesired portions to form a metal film on an outer area of the wafer and a lattice-patterned metal film on a pattern area of the wafer. The lattice-patterned metal film is formed on an area corresponding to scribe lines of devices to be arranged in a matrix on the wafer. Then, the metal films are connected to a ground. Subsequently, a vanadium oxide film is formed on the wafer using a sputtering process. Therefore, the vanadium oxide film is prevented from becoming charged at the time of deposition thereof on the wafer to suppress increasing of self bias potential and attain uniformity in resistance value of the vanadium oxide film.

Abstract: A method of producing a multilayer structure that has reduced interfacial roughness and interlayer mixing by using a physical-vapor deposition apparatus. In general the method includes forming a bottom layer having a first material wherein a first plurality of monolayers of the first material is deposited on an underlayer using a low incident adatom energy. Next, a second plurality of monolayers of the first material is deposited on top of the first plurality of monolayers of the first material using a high incident adatom energy. Thereafter, the method further includes forming a second layer having a second material wherein a first plurality of monolayers of the second material is deposited on the second plurality of monolayers of the first material using a low incident adatom energy. Next, a second plurality of monolayers of the second material is deposited on the first plurality of monolayers of the second material using a high incident adatom energy.

Abstract: This invention is directed to a method for rapid plasma etching of materials which are difficult to etch at a high rate. The method is particularly useful in plasma etching silicon nitride layers more than five microns thick. The method includes the use of a plasma source gas that includes an etchant gas and a sputtering gas. Two separate power sources are used in the etching process and the power to each power source as well as the ratio between the flow rates of the etchant gas and sputtering gas can be advantageously adjusted to obtain etch rates of silicon nitride greater than two microns per minute. Additionally, an embodiment of the method of the invention provides a two etch step process which combines a high etch rate process with a low etch rate process to achieve high throughput while minimizing the likelihood of damage to underlying layers. The first etch step of the two-step method provides a high etch rate of about two microns per minute to remove substantially all of a layer to be etched.

Abstract: A vacuum coating installation has at least a central distribution station which can be evacuated and has a transport arrangement driven in a controlled manner essentially along a plane, for the material to be treated. One operating station for the distribution station as well as at least two processing stations for the material to be treated are provided. The three or more stations communicate by way of operating openings with the distribution station, through which openings the material to be treated can be transported from one station into the other by the transport arrangement for the material to be treated. The material to be treated is formed by individual workpiece holders of the installation, each having a plurality of workpiece supports.

Abstract: A sputtering target assembly for depositing onto a selected substrate area comprises a target/cathode having a planar sputtering surface including an erosion track area, a collimating shield positioned proximate to the sputtering surface, surrounding at least a portion of the erosion track area, and including an inwardly facing wall, and a blocking shield centrally positioned over the surface of the target/cathode and including an outwardly facing wall, wherein the inwardly facing wall of the collimating shield and the outwardly facing wall of the central blocking shield form an open-ended channel for directing sputtered particles onto the selected substrate area. A method for utilizing the target assembly for selectively depositing a thicker protective overcoat layer on the inner CSS or landing zone relative to the outer data zone of disk-shaped recording media is provided.

Abstract: A method for producing thin film alloy by a sputtering deposition process comprising using a target having compartments of individual components arranged in concentric circles.

Abstract: A process for producing an ink jet head having an ink pathway communicating with a discharging outlet and an energy generating element for generating energy utilized for discharging ink.

Abstract: A process for the preparation of a sputtering target which comprises sub-stoichiometric titanium dioxide, TiOx, where x is below 2 having an electrical resistivity of less than 0.5 ohm·cm, optionally together with niobium oxide, which process comprises plasma spraying titanium dioxide, TiO2, optionally together with niobium oxide, onto a target base in an atmosphere which is oxygen deficient and which does not contain oxygen-containing compounds, the target base being coated with TiOx, which is solidified by cooling under conditions which prevent the sub-stoichiometric titanium dioxide from combining with oxygen.

Abstract: A metal-air fuel cell battery (FCB) system includes an electrolyte, air electrodes, and a movable anode having anode material deposited on two sides of an electrically conductive substrate. The anode can be, for example, either a rotating anode disk, or a linearly-movable anode, sandwiched between the two air electrodes. The air electrodes each have at least one recharging portion and at least one discharging portion. The anode movement, which can be, for example, rotational or linear, is relative to the recharging air electrode portion for recharging the anode material and relative to the discharging air electrode portion for discharging the anode material.

Abstract: An object of the present invention is to provide a ferroelectric capacitor which shows excellent ferroelectricity. A silicon oxidation layer 4, a lower electrode 12, a ferroelectric layer 8 and an upper electrode 15 are formed on a silicon substrate 2. The lower electrode 12 is made of palladium oxide. Also, the upper electrode 15 is made by palladium oxide, since palladium oxide prevents leakage of oxygen contained in the ferroelectric layer 8. Thus, the ferroelectric capacitor of the present invention offers excellent ferroelectricity can be realized.

Abstract: A physical vapor deposition apparatus is provided with at least one workpiece processing chamber and a programmable control device for controlling process variables within the processing chamber. The control device is programmed to vary the power to an aluminum sputtering target during deposition of aluminum layers. By controlling the applied power, the rate of deposition of the aluminum is varied in a manner which reduces or avoids the creation of voids during the filling of high aspect ratio features.

Abstract: A solar control member utilizes a combination of layers that include spaced apart titanium nitride layers to selectively transmit a higher percentage of visible light than near infrared energy, with a low visible light reflection. The titanium nitride layers are spaced apart by a distance that promotes optical decoupling with respect to occurrence of constructive and destructive interference of visible light propagating between the two titanium nitride layers. In one embodiment, the titanium nitride layers are spaced apart by a laminating adhesive layer. In another embodiment, the titanium nitride layers are formed on opposite sides of a substrate. Each titanium nitride layer is sputter deposited. Care is taken to ensure that each layer does not become too metallic and to ensure that excessive oxygen is not incorporated into the layer.

Abstract: A method of deposition of a phosphor in a single-source sputtering process, in which the phosphor is selected from the group consisting of ternary, quaternary or higher thioaluminate, thiogallate and thioindate phosphors, and composites thereof, synthesized with cations selected from Groups IIA and IIB of the Periodic Table of Elements. The phosphor is of a pre-determined composition of elements. The method comprising sputtering in a hydrogen sulphide atmosphere from a single source composition so as to deposit a composition on a substrate. The composition of the targets of the single source has a relative increase in concentration of elements of the phosphor that have a lower atomic weight compared to other elements in said phosphor. The relative increase is controlled such that deposition of the predetermined composition is effected on the substrate. Preferred phosphors are barium thioaluminate (BaAl2S4:Eu), and barium magnesium thioaluminates.