R. Ganesan

The role of pulse length in target poisoning during reactive HiPIMS: application to amorphous HfO2

In conventional reactive magnetron sputtering, target poisoning frequently leads to an instability that requires the reactive gas flow rate to be actively regulated to maintain a constant composition of the deposited layers. Here we demonstrate that the pulse length in high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) is important for determining the surface conditions on the target that lead to poisoning. By increasing the pulse length, a smooth transition can be achieved from a poisoned target condition (short pulses) to a quasi-metallic target condition (long pulses). Appropriate selection of pulse length eliminates the need for active regulation, enabling stable reactive magnetron sputter deposition of stoichiometric amorphous hafnium oxide (HfO 2 ) from a Hf target. A model is presented for the reactive HiPIMS process in which the target operates in a partially poisoned mode with a distribution of oxide on its surface that depends on the pulse length.

Memristor and selector devices fabricated from HfO2−xNx

Monoclinic HfO2−xNx has been incorporated into two-terminal devices exhibiting either memristor or selector operation depending on the controlled inclusion/suppression of mobile oxygen vacancies. In HfO2 memristors containing oxygen vacancies, gradual conductance modulation, short-term plasticity, and long-term potentiation were observed using appropriate voltage-spike stimulation, suggesting suitability for artificial neural networks. Passivation of oxygen vacancies, confirmed by X-ray absorption spectroscopy, was achieved in HfO2−xNx films by the addition of nitrogen during growth. Selector devices formed on these films exhibited threshold switching and current controlled negative differential resistance consistent with thermally driven insulator to metal transitions.

Synthesis of highly tetrahedral amorphous carbon by mixed-mode HiPIMS sputtering

Tetrahedral amorphous carbon films with an sp 3 content of 80% have been produced by high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) operating in a mixed sputtering/arc mode. In this mode, short-lived cathode spots form in the magnetic racetrack and produce large numbers of carbon ions. The spots move rapidly, inhibiting the formation of macroparticles. An argon pressure below 2.5 mTorr was critical for obtaining films with high sp 3 content, high stress, large Tauc gap and symmetrical Raman spectra, and all four quantities were strongly correlated.

Influence of nitrogen-related defects on optical and electrical behaviour in HfO2−xNx deposited by high-power impulse magnetron sputtering

HfO2−xNx films have been deposited by high-power impulse magnetron sputtering in an Ar-O2-N2 atmosphere with a series of nitrogen partial pressures. X-ray absorption spectroscopy revealed the optimum deposition conditions required to passivate O vacancies in the HfO2−xNx films by nitrogen. Low-mobility interstitial species prevent crystallisation of nitrogen-incorporated films. These effects combine to remove leakage paths resulting in superior breakdown strengths compared to films deposited without nitrogen. The bandgap was maintained at ∼5.9 eV in the films in which nitrogen passivated the oxygen vacancies. This is essential to provide sufficient band offsets for HfO2−xNx films to be used an effective gate dielectric.

A feedback model of magnetron sputtering plasmas in HIPIMS

We present a 1D feedback model that captures the essential elements of plasma pulse initiation and is useful for control and diagnostics of sputtering plasmas. Our model falls into the class of single-species population models with recruitment and time delay, which show no oscillatory behaviour. The model can reproduce essential features of published time–current traces from plasma discharges and is useful to determine the key parameters affecting the evolution of the discharge. We include the external circuit and we focus on the time evolution of the current as a function of the applied voltage and the plasma parameters. We find the necessity of a nonlinear loss term in the time-dependent plasma ion population to ensure a stable discharge, and we show that a higher secondary electron emission coefficient reduces the time delay for current initiation. We report that I–V characteristics in the plateau region, where it exists, fit a power curve of the form I = kVn, where n is influenced most strongly by the nonlinear loss term.

Pulsed external magnetic fields increase the deposition rate in reactive HiPIMS while preserving stoichiometry: An application to amorphous HfO2

We compare the use of externally applied pulsed and steady magnetic fields for the enhancement of deposition rate in reactive High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HiPIMS), using the deposition of amorphous hafnium oxide (a-HfO2) on Si as an example. The external magnetic fields were applied by a solenoidal coil, placed above the magnetron target. In the case of a steady magnetic field, a higher voltage was required to initiate the HiPIMS discharge, a longer delay time was observed for current onset, and the films became substoichiometric. For the pulsed magnetic field, film stoichiometry was maintained under all applied external magnetic field strengths. Varying the duration and delay times of the magnetic field after the application of HiPIMS voltage pulse revealed that the afterglow of the plasma between HiPIMS pulses was actively quenched by the presence of the magnetic field. Therefore, the optimum operation with the highest plasma density was obtained by applying the external magnetic field only ...

Evolution of target condition in reactive HiPIMS as a function of duty cycle: An opportunity for refractive index grading

Competition between target erosion and compound layer formation during pulse cycles in reactive HiPIMS opens up the possibility of tuning discharge conditions and the properties of deposited films by varying the duty cycle in situ without altering the reactive gas mixture. Three different reactive systems, hafnium in oxygen, tungsten in oxygen, and tungsten in oxygen/nitrogen, are studied in which amorphous films of hafnium oxide (HfO2), tungsten oxide (WO3), and tungsten oxynitride (WOxNy) are deposited. We show that the cyclic evolution of the target surface composition depends on the properties of the target including its affinity for the reactive gas mix and the compound layer melting point and volatility. We find that pulse length variations modulate the target compound layer and hence the discharge chemistry and properties of the films deposited. The refractive indices of HfO2 and WO3 were progressively reduced with the duty cycle, whereas that of WOxNy increased. These variations were found to be d...

Laser fabrication of electrical feedthroughs in polymer encapsulations for active implantable medical devices

Hermetic electrical feedthroughs are essential for safe and functional active implantable biomedical devices and for a wide range of other applications such as batteries, supercapacitors, OLEDs and solar cells. Ceramics and metals have previously been the materials of choice for encapsulations, while polymers have advantages of ease of mass production and end user compatibility. We demonstrate a laser sealing technology that gives hermetic, mechanically strong feedthroughs with low electrical resistance in a polyetheretherketone (PEEK) encapsulation. The conductive pathways are wires and sputtered thin films. The water vapor transmission rate through the fabricated encapsulations is comparable to that of PEEK itself.

Quantifying plasma immersion ion implantation of insulating surfaces in a dielectric barrier discharge: how to control the dose

The plasma physics of dielectric barrier discharges (DBD) for carrying out ion implantation in insulators is investigated. A hollow cathode DBD excited by high-voltage pulses is suitable for ion bombardment of the surfaces of insulating tubing, porous material, particles and sheets. Plasma immersion ion implantation of insulating surfaces is useful for many applications in medicine and engineering. The ion bombardment of glass is useful for cleaning and surface modification. The ion implantation of polymers creates radicals that are able to bind molecules to their surfaces for applications in medical procedures and diagnostics. A wire diagnostic probe and optical emission spectroscopy are used for experimental work. A theory based on mutual capacitance is developed to convert data from the probe to give implanted charge as a function of pressure, voltage and pulse duration. We find the operating conditions that allow for charge to be implanted and those that achieve the highest implanted charge.