Abstract: A magnetron sputtering source with a target having a surface to be sputtered, has a magnet arrangement for generating on the surface a magnetron magnetic field pattern, so as to generate on the surface to be sputtered an outer erosion profile along a substantially circular locus and an inner erosion profile within the outer erosion profile. The surface consists of a material with at least two elements of different weight and the magnet arrangement is adapted to form the inner erosion profile three-dimensionally cup-shaped.

Abstract: An apparatus with a magnetron sputtering-coating chamber, source, target and substrate holder, includes a magnet arrangement for generating on a surface of the target, at least two tunnel-shaped magnetron magnetic fields in the form of closed loops that are substantially concentrically to, and spaced from each other. The surface consisting of a material with at least two elements of different weight. The distance between the substrate and target surface, the substrate radius, loci of erosion patterns in the surface and the radius and placement of the loops are all related to each other.

Abstract: A target of an alloy of metals having different specific weights is used in a method for producing substrates that are coated with a layer comprising the same two metals by magnetron sputtering of the target. When sputtering such a target material, the metals of the alloy will sputter off with different sputtering characteristics with regard to a static angle &agr; at which the sputtered off material leaves the target. For this reason, at the substrate to be sputter-coated, there occurs a demixing effect of these metals which will be deposited with a varying local ratio of the metals, that differs form the ratio of the metals in the alloy of the target. To counter-act this demixing phenomenon, the location of an electron trap formed by the magnetron field of the sputter source at the target with respect to the location of the substrate, is selected.

Abstract: A target of an alloy of metals having different specific weights is used in a method for producing substrates that are coated with a layer comprising the same two metals by magnetron sputtering of the target. When sputtering such a target material, the metals of the alloy will sputter off with different sputtering characteristics with regard to a static angle a at which the sputtered off material leaves the target. For this reason, at the substrate to be sputter-coated, there occurs a demixing effect of these metals which will be deposited with a varying local ratio of the metals, that differs form the ratio of the metals in the alloy of the target. To counter-act this demixing phenomenon, the location of an electron trap formed by the magnetron field of the sputter source at the target with respect to the location of the substrate, is selected.