A method and system for vacuum vapor deposition of a deposition material to form functional materials, including a coating, a thin film material, or a thick film material, upon a substrate in space utilizes: a substrate support structure associated with a space platform; a depositor for the deposition material; and a moveable elongate arm associated with a space platform that provides relative movement between the substrate and the depositor.

The invention provides an apparatus that causes film formation particles to adhere to a surface of a substrate moving in a hermetically-sealable chamber and thereby forms a thin film thereon and includes: a plasma generator; a substrate transfer unit; a film-formation source supplier; and a film-formation region limiter. The plasma generator includes a magnet located at the other surface of the substrate and a gas supplier that supplies a film forming gas to near the surface of the substrate. The film-formation region limiter includes a shield that is located close to the surface of the substrate and has an opening. The ratio of a diameter of the opening of the shield to a diameter of the plasma generated by the plasma generator in a direction along the surface of the substrate is in a range of less than or equal to 110/100.

A system for treating a substrate comprising an unwinder adapted to receive and unwind a roll of substrate and a rewinder adapted to rewind the substrate from the unwinder. The system further comprising a physical vapour deposition (PVD) apparatus, a vacuum chamber in which the unwinder, PVD apparatus and rewinder are disposed; and wherein a coating drum of the PVD apparatus has a temperature of between 0° C. and 10° C., and is adapted to increase a desorption rate of the substrate.

Metrology systems and processing methods for continuous lithium ion battery (LIB) anode pre-lithiation and solid metal anode protection are provided. In some embodiments, the metrology system integrates at least one complementary non-contact sensor to measure at least one of surface composition, coating thickness, and nanoscale roughness. The metrology system and processing methods can be used to address anode edge quality. The metrology system and methods can facilitate high quality and high yield closed loop anode pre-lithiation and anode protection layer deposition, alloy-type anode pre-lithiation stage control improves LIB coulombic efficiency, and anode coating with pinhole free and electrochemically active protection layers resist dendrite formation.

A method of manufacturing an anode structure (10) for a lithium battery is described. The method includes a first deposition of lithium on a first flexible support (21) to provide a lithium anode-first sublayer (12-1) with a first lithium surface (31); a second deposition of lithium on a second flexible support (22) to provide a lithium anode-second sublayer (12-2) with a second lithium surface (32); and combining the lithium anode-first sublayer (12-1) and the lithium anode-second sublayer (12-2) by pressing the first lithium surface and the second lithium surface together to form a lithium metal anode layer (12). Further described are a lithium battery layer stack with an anode structure manufactured according to the described method, and a vacuum deposition system for manufacturing an anode structure as described herein.

Mass production of nanoscale thin layer is essential for industrial uses. Reel-to-reel sputtering method is an effective deposition means for producing nanoscale thin layers on a flexible substrate in a vacuum chamber. The present disclosure provides an apparatus for depositing a thin sputtered film on the flexible substrate. By way of example, the apparatus includes a reel-to-reel sputtering system including a deposition or processing chamber, one or more sputtering devices in the processing chamber, a mask device disposed in the processing chamber, and one or more mask supporters coupled to the mask device. Further, the sputtering operation occurs in the processing chamber when the one or more sputtering devices are in operation as a flexible substrate moves under the mask device from a first roller set to a second roller set.

Exemplary processing methods may include translating a lithium film beneath a first showerhead. The methods may include introducing an oxidizer gas through the first showerhead onto the lithium film. The methods may include forming an oxide monolayer on the lithium film. The oxide monolayer may be or include the oxidizer gas adsorbed on the lithium film. The methods may include translating the lithium film beneath a second showerhead after forming the oxide monolayer. The methods may include introducing a carbon source gas through the first showerhead onto the lithium film. The methods may also include converting the oxide monolayer into a carbonate passivation layer through reaction of the oxide monolayer with the carbon source gas.

A treatment apparatus includes two can rolls provided on a transfer path through which a long resin film is transferred in a roll-to-roll manner in a vacuum chamber; and surface treatment means facing an outer circumference of each of the can rolls to treat a surface of the long resin film cooled by being wound around the outer circumference. The downstream can roll is provided with upper and lower two sets of feeding and sending systems, and one surface of the long resin film in contact with the outer circumference of the downstream can roll at a time when the long resin film travels through the lower one of the two sets of feeding and sending systems is opposite to the other surface of the resin film in contact with the outer circumference of the downstream can roll at a time when the resin film travels through the upper one.

Provided is an electromagnetic wave transmissive metal member capable of being easily produced at a low production cost, with both a metallic luster and an electromagnetic wave transmissibility, an article using the electromagnetic wave transmissive metal member, and a production method for an electromagnetic wave transmissive metal film. The electromagnetic wave transmissive metal member comprises a metal layer and a crack layer, wherein the metal layer and the crack layer have, in their respective planes, a plurality of linear cracks extending substantially parallel to each other. The linear cracks in the metal layer and the linear cracks in the crack layer penetrate through their respective layers in a thickness direction, and are continuous with each other in the thickness direction.

Inside a main chamber there are provided: first partition walls partitioning a deposition chamber having a deposition unit; and second partition walls disposed in continuation to the first partition walls so as to cover outer cylinder parts of a can-roller while leaving a first gap that curves at a curvature coinciding with an outer peripheral surface of the can-roller. The deposition chamber and an adjacent chamber are in communication with each other with the first gap such that a conductance between the deposition chamber and the adjacent chamber is determined by the second partition walls. At least one of the second partition walls is arranged to be rotatable, with a rotary shaft of the can-roller, between a shielding position which shields such a part of the can-roller as is lying opposite to the deposition unit, and a withdrawn position which is circumferentially away from the deposition unit.