Electrochromic devices and methods may employ the addition of a defect-mitigating insulating layer which prevents electronically conducting layers and/or electrochromically active layers from contacting layers of the opposite polarity and creating a short circuit in regions where defects form. In some embodiments, an encapsulating layer is provided to encapsulate particles and prevent them from ejecting from the device stack and risking a short circuit when subsequent layers are deposited. The insulating layer may have an electronic resistivity of between about 1 and 10.sup.8 Ohm-cm. In some embodiments, the insulating layer contains one or more of the following metal oxides: aluminum oxide, zinc oxide, tin oxide, silicon aluminum oxide, cerium oxide, tungsten oxide, nickel tungsten oxide, and oxidized indium tin oxide. Carbides, nitrides, oxynitrides, and oxycarbides may also be used.

Electrochromic devices and methods may employ the addition of a defect-mitigating insulating layer which prevents electronically conducting layers and/or electrochromically active layers from contacting layers of the opposite polarity and creating a short circuit in regions where defects form. In some embodiments, an encapsulating layer is provided to encapsulate particles and prevent them from ejecting from the device stack and risking a short circuit when subsequent layers are deposited. The insulating layer may have an electronic resistivity of between about 1 and 10.sup.8 Ohm-cm. In some embodiments, the insulating layer contains one or more of the following metal oxides: aluminum oxide, zinc oxide, tin oxide, silicon aluminum oxide, cerium oxide, tungsten oxide, nickel tungsten oxide, and oxidized indium tin oxide. Carbides, nitrides, oxynitrides, and oxycarbides may also be used.

A deposition apparatus includes a shield member having a lattice shape in a plan view, the lattice shape including short side edges extending along a first direction and long side edges extending along a second direction, the short side edges including first and second short side edges, a bracket member including a first bracket member coupled to the first short side edge, and a second bracket member coupled to the second short side edge, a plurality of anode bars extending along the second direction and stably placed on each of the first bracket member and the second bracket member, and a target member covering the plurality of anode bars. An anode bar of the plurality of anode bars protrudes outward beyond at least one of the first bracket member and the second bracket member, and the anode bar is physically separated from the shield member by the bracket member.

A deposition apparatus includes a shield member having a lattice shape in a plan view, the lattice shape including short side edges extending along a first direction and long side edges extending along a second direction, the short side edges including first and second short side edges, a bracket member including a first bracket member coupled to the first short side edge, and a second bracket member coupled to the second short side edge, a plurality of anode bars extending along the second direction and stably placed on each of the first bracket member and the second bracket member, and a target member covering the plurality of anode bars. An anode bar of the plurality of anode bars protrudes outward beyond at least one of the first bracket member and the second bracket member, and the anode bar is physically separated from the shield member by the bracket member.

Embodiments of process shield for use in process chambers are provided herein. In some embodiments, a process shield for use in a process chamber includes: an annular body having an upper portion and a lower portion extending downward and radially inward from the upper portion, wherein the upper portion includes a plurality of annular trenches on an upper surface thereof and having a plurality of slots disposed therebetween to fluidly couple the plurality of annular trenches, wherein one or more inlets extend from an outer surface of the annular body to an outermost trench of the plurality of annular trenches.

The present disclosure is a wafer support, which includes a heating unit, an insulating-and-heat-conducting unit and a conduct portion, wherein the insulating-and-heat-conducting unit is positioned between the conduct portion and the heating unit. During a deposition process, an AC bias is formed on the conduct portion to attract a plasma disposed thereabove. The heating unit includes at least one heating coil, wherein the heating coil heats the wafer supported by the wafer support via the insulating-and-heat-conducting unit and the conduct portion. The insulating-and-heat-conducting unit electrically insulates the heating unit and the conduct portion to prevent the AC flowing in the heating coil and the AC bias on the conduct portion from conducting each other, so the wafer support can generate a stable AC bias and temperature to facilitate forming an evenly-distributed thin film on the wafer supported by the wafer support.

The present disclosure provides a thin-film-deposition equipment with double-layer shielding device, which includes a reaction chamber, a carrier and a double-layer shielding device. The double-layer shielding device includes a first-shield member, a second-shield member, a first-guard plate, a second-guard plate and a driver. The first-guard plate is disposed on the first-shield member, the second-guard plate is disposed on the second-shield member. The driver interconnects the two shield members for driving and swinging the two shield members to move in opposite directions. During a cleaning process, the driver swings the two shield members toward each other into a shielding state for covering the carrier, the two guard plates thereon also approach each other to cover the shield members, such that to effectively prevent polluting the carrier during the process of cleaning the thin-film-deposition equipment.

The present disclosure provides a thin-film-deposition equipment with double-layer shielding device, which includes a reaction chamber, a carrier and a double-layer shielding device. The double-layer shielding device includes a first-shield member, a second-shield member, a first-guard plate, a second-guard plate and a driver. The first-guard plate is disposed on the first-shield member, the second-guard plate is disposed on the second-shield member. The driver interconnects the two shield members for driving and swinging the two shield members to move in opposite directions. During a cleaning process, the driver swings the two shield members toward each other into a shielding state for covering the carrier, the two guard plates thereon also approach each other to cover the shield members, such that to effectively prevent polluting the carrier during the process of cleaning the thin-film-deposition equipment.

The present disclosure provides a thin-film-deposition equipment with double-shaft shielding device, which includes a reaction chamber, a carrier and a double-shaft shielding device. The double-shaft shielding device includes a first-connecting arm, a second-connecting arm, a first-shield member, a second-shield member, a first driver and a second driver. The first driver is connected to the first-shield member via the first-connecting arm, and the second driver is connected to the second-shield member via the second-connecting arm, for respectively driving and swinging the two shield members to move in opposite directions via the two connecting arms. Thereby, during a cleaning process of the thin-film-deposition equipment, the two drivers swing the two shield members toward each other into a shielding state for covering the carrier, such that to effectively prevent removed pollutants from polluting the carrier during.

A gold sputtering target has a gold purity of 99.999% or more. In such a gold sputtering target, an average value of Vickers hardness is 20 or more and less than 40, an average crystal grain size is 15 μm or more and 200 μm or less, and a {110} plane of gold is preferentially oriented to a surface to be sputtered of the gold sputtering target.