Provided are a method and a device that can measure sputtered particles discharged by sputtering with high precision within a short time. A measuring device has a measuring section that measures a ratio between an equivalent value of the number of ion particles discharged from a target by sputtering caused by a pulsed electric discharge and an equivalent value of the number of neutral particles discharged from the target by the pulsed electric discharge. The ratio between the number of the ion particles and the number of the neutral particles discharged from the target by the sputtering can be regarded as one of factors affecting quality of a vapor-deposited film, a film growth rate and an etching rate. Thus, a factor affecting the quality of the vapor-deposited film, the film growth rate and the etching rate can be grasped and also controlled.

There is a method for forming a film including an alloy film containing multiple types of elements on a surface of a substrate using a film forming target made of the alloy film, comprising: (a) arranging the film forming target and a distribution improvement target; and (b) forming the film on the substrate by simultaneously or alternately sputtering the film forming target and the distribution improvement target, wherein the distribution improvement target is made of a distribution improvement film containing a non-uniform element among the multiple types of elements, and in step (b), a larger amount of the non-uniform element sputtered from the distribution improvement target is supplied to a portion where the distribution amount of the non-uniform element is small compared to a portion where the distribution amount of the non-uniform element is large when the film is formed on the substrate by the film forming target.

To improve the electrical characteristics of a semiconductor device including an oxide semiconductor, and to provide a highly reliable semiconductor device with a small variation in electrical characteristics. The semiconductor device includes a first insulating film, a first barrier film over the first insulating film, a second insulating film over the first barrier film, and a first transistor including a first oxide semiconductor film over the second insulating film. The amount of hydrogen molecules released from the first insulating film at a given temperature higher than or equal to 400° C., which is measured by thermal desorption spectroscopy, is less than or equal to 130% of the amount of released hydrogen molecules at 300° C. The second insulating film includes a region containing oxygen at a higher proportion than oxygen in the stoichiometric composition.

A deposition system provides a feature that may reduce costs of the sputtering process by increasing a target change interval. The deposition system provides an array of magnet members which generate a magnetic field and redirect the magnetic field based on target thickness measurement data. To adjust or redirect the magnetic field, at least one of the magnet members in the array tilts to focus on an area of the target where more target material remains than other areas. As a result, more ion, e.g., argon ion bombardment occurs on the area, creating more uniform erosion on the target surface.

A cathodic arc evaporation apparatus including a target which has a target surface including an active surface from where material can be evaporated in a cathodic arc process; a confinement surrounding an outer boarder of the target surface; an anode having an electron receiving surface, the anode encompassing at least one of the target and the confinement in at least one of a target plane and an axial distance in front of the active surface; and a magnetic guidance system adapted to provide a magnetic field at the target surface being essentially in parallel to at least an outer region of the target surface so that magnetic field lines are in parallel to the target surface or inclined to it in an acute angle α, whereat an active surface is defined in a surface area where magnetic field lines enter the target surface in an acute angle α≤45°.

An apparatus leverages a physical vapor deposition (PVD) process chamber with a wafer-to-target distance of approximately 400 millimeters to deposit tantalum film on through silicon via (TSV) structures. The PVD process chamber includes a source that is configured with dual magnet source compensation. The PVD chamber also includes an upper electromagnet assembly exterior to the chamber body in close proximity to the source, a magnetron assembly in the source including dual magnets with dual radius trajectories, a shield within the chamber body, and a plurality of grounding loops that are symmetrically spaced about a periphery of a substrate support assembly and are configured to provide an RF ground return path between the substrate support assembly and the shield.

The present disclosure provides a bias magnetic field control method, a magnetic thin film deposition method, a chamber, and an apparatus. The control method includes the following step: S1, rotating the bias magnetic field device by a fixed angle along a circumferential direction of a base every first preset application time length of a target until total application time length of the target reaches an upper limit. Each time the bias magnetic field device is rotated in a same direction. With the technical solution of the bias magnetic field control method, the magnetic thin film deposition method, the chamber, and the apparatus of the present disclosure, the lifetime of the target may be increased, and the utilization rate of the target and the film thickness uniformity may be improved to reduce manufacturing cost.

Magnetron sputtering source (1) for coating of a substrate (2), the sputtering source (1) comprising: a target (5) having a target surface at a front side a magnetron arrangement (511, 512) at a backside of the target (5) for creating a magnetic field near the target surface, to define a loop shaped erosion zone (20) at the target surface between an inner magnet assembly (512) and an outer magnet assembly (511), wherein the erosion zone (20) comprises a middle section with two parallel tracks (26) having a distance (d) and two curved end loop sections (27) each of which connects adjoining ends of the parallel tracks (26) and has a loop width (w) in the direction of the distance (d) which is greater than the distance (d) resulting in a double-T-shaped primary geometry of the erosion zone to provide an increased coating material flux from the end loop sections (27) to the substrate.

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.

An apparatus for processing or curing a substrate, the apparatus comprising: a support (102) arranged to transport a moving flexible substrate (104), a plasma generator (110) arranged to generate plasma (112), a magnet array (114) arranged to spatially define the plasma, wherein the magnet array comprises: a first elongate magnet (404) having a first polarity; a second elongate magnet (406), substantially parallel to the first elongate magnet, having a second polarity, opposite to the first polarity, such that the first and second elongate magnets define a first straight magnetic flux portion (204); a third elongate magnet (408), substantially parallel to the first elongate magnet, having the first polarity, such that the second and third elongate magnets define a second straight magnetic flux portion, connected to the first straight magnetic flux portion by a first curved magnetic flux portion (206); a fourth elongate magnet (410), substantially parallel to the first elongate magnet, having the second polarity, such that the third and fourth elongate magnets define a third straight magnetic flux portion, connected to the second straight magnetic flux portion by a second curved magnetic flux portion.