US 12,243,715 B2
Ion beam sputtering apparatus and method
Richard John Futter, Lower Hutt (NZ); Ryan James Davidson, Lower Hutt (NZ); Jerome Leveneur, Lower Hutt (NZ); and John Vedamuthu Kennedy, Lower Hutt (NZ)
Assigned to Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences Limited, Lower Hutt (NZ)
Appl. No. 16/956,419
Filed by Institute of Geological and Nuclear Sciences Limited, Lower Hutt (NZ)
PCT Filed Dec. 21, 2018, PCT No. PCT/NZ2018/050183
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Jun. 19, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2019/125186, PCT Pub. Date Jun. 27, 2019.
Claims priority of application No. 738705 (NZ), filed on Dec. 22, 2017.
Prior Publication US 2021/0104380 A1, Apr. 8, 2021
Int. Cl. H01J 37/317 (2006.01); C23C 14/22 (2006.01); C23C 14/34 (2006.01); C23C 14/46 (2006.01); C23C 14/56 (2006.01)
CPC H01J 37/3178 (2013.01) [C23C 14/221 (2013.01); C23C 14/3407 (2013.01); C23C 14/46 (2013.01); C23C 14/562 (2013.01); H01J 2237/3146 (2013.01)] 40 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. Ion beam sputtering apparatus comprising:
an ion source configured to generate a hollow ion beam along a beam axis that is located in a hollow part of the hollow ion beam; and
a sputtering target having a target body that defines at least one target surface, the target body comprising sputterable particles, the target body being located relative to the ion source so that the hollow ion beam hits the at least one target surface to sputter particles from the target body towards a surface of an object to be modified;
wherein the target body is shaped so that the particles sputtered towards the surface of the object to be modified are sputtered from the sputtering target in radially extending sputter directions relative to the beam axis, the sputter directions extending towards the beam axis;
wherein the target body has a target passage that is hollow and extends through the target body, the target passage having an ion beam inlet for the hollow ion beam and a particle outlet for sputtered particles to exit the target passage towards the surface of the object to be modified;
wherein a cross sectional area of the particle outlet, in a plane perpendicular to the beam axis, is substantially smaller than a cross sectional area of a hollow portion of the hollow ion beam such that the target passage is shaped to prevent the hollow ion beam exiting the target passage towards the surface of the object to be modified without hitting the target surface.