Method of manufacturing vacuum plasma treated workpieces

• Main Authors: ELYAAKOUBI MUSTAPHA, OSTERMANN RAINER, AING PHANNARA, RIOU BENOIT, NEUBECK KLAUS
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 29.09.2009
• Subjects: BASIC ELECTRIC ELEMENTS; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; CHEMISTRY; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATIONOR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY IONIMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS; ELECTRIC TECHNIQUES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR; ELECTRICITY; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION INGENERAL; METALLURGY; MULTI-STEP PROCESSES FOR SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLICMATERIAL INVOLVING AT LEAST ONE PROCESS PROVIDED FOR IN CLASSC23 AND AT LEAST ONEPROCESS COVERED BY SUBCLASS C21D OR C22F OR CLASS C25; NON-MECHANICAL REMOVAL OF METALLIC MATERIAL FROM SURFACE; PLASMA TECHNIQUE; PRODUCTION OF ACCELERATED ELECTRICALLY-CHARGED PARTICLES OR OFNEUTRONS; PRODUCTION OR ACCELERATION OF NEUTRAL MOLECULAR OR ATOMICBEAMS; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THESURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION

A method of manufacturing vacuum plasma treated workpieces includes the steps of introducing at least one workpiece to be treated into a vacuum chamber; treating the workpiece in the vacuum chamber, thereby establishing a plasma discharge in the vacuum chamber by a supply signal with maximum energy at a first frequency which is at least in the Hf frequency range; removing the workpiece treated from the vacuum chamber; performing a cleaning inside the vacuum chamber, thereby establishing the plasma discharge by a supply signal with maximum energy at a second frequency higher than the Hf frequency; and repeating these steps at least one time.