Atmospheric-Pressure Plasmas for Wide-Area Thin-Film Deposition and Etching

• Published in: Plasma processes and polymers Vol. 4; no. 3; pp. 253 - 265
• Main Authors: Hopfe, Volkmar, Sheel, David W.
• Format: Journal Article Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Weinheim WILEY-VCH Verlag 23.04.2007; WILEY‐VCH Verlag; Wiley-VCH
• Subjects: anti-scratch coatings; atmospheric pressure glow discharges (APGD); Chemical vapor deposition (including plasma-enhanced cvd, mocvd, etc.); Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; DC discharges; Exact sciences and technology; Materials science; Methods of deposition of films and coatings; film growth and epitaxy; microwave discharges; Physics; plasma etching; plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PE-CVD); remote plasma processes; silicon nitride; silicon oxide; Scratching test; Inorganic compounds; Atmospheric pressure; Growth rate; anti-scratch coatings; atmospheric pressure glow discharges (APGD); Transition element compounds; Operating mode; Etching rate; DC discharges; CVD; Metal coating; silicon nitride; Plasma etching; Scaling laws; plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PE-CVD); silicon oxide; remote plasma processes; PECVD; microwave discharges; Application
• ISSN: 1612-8850; 1612-8869
• DOI: 10.1002/ppap.200600202

The present paper is focused on coating technologies compatible with industrial requirements, particularly on atmospheric pressure plasma technologies which are compatible with scaling to wide substrate widths (≥0.5 m). The AP‐PECVD reactors are designed for continuous air‐to‐air processing, and can be used for deposition of non‐oxide films. Two thermal methods for atmospheric pressure processing are considered: microwave CVD and DC ArcJet‐CVD. Typical thin film growth rates for PECVD are in the range of 5–100 nm · s−1 (static) and up to 2 nm · m · s−1 (dynamic). The rates for plasma chemical etching are typically 10 times higher. A complimentary lower energy plasma source based on dielectric barrier glow discharge plasma CVD has also been explored. Developments are underway to explore uses for the coating technology, for example scratch resistant coatings on metals, barrier layers, self‐clean functional surfaces and antireflective coatings. Coating materials range from silica, titania, aluminium oxide, metal composite layers, carbon and silicon nitride. Layer properties are close to data known from low pressure PECVD. Plasma chemical etching has been developed for crystalline silicon photovoltaics. The surface textures strongly change with the precursors and the plasma parameters used.