Modified high power impulse magnetron sputtering process for increased deposition rate of titanium

A modified version of high power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) has been used to deposit titanium films at higher deposition rates than for conventional HiPIMS while maintaining similar pulse voltages and peak currents. In the present study, additional control parameters are explored through the chopping of the HiPIMS pulse into a pulse sequence. Experiments show that the use of sequences allows for an increase of the deposition rate of more than 45% compared to conventional HiPIMS. The increase in deposition rate is ascribed to a combination of reduced gas rarefaction effects, prevention of sustained self-sputtering, and a relaxation of ion trapping. (C) 2013 American Vacuum Society.