A deposition system, and a method of operation thereof are disclosed. The deposition system comprises a cathode assembly comprising a rotating magnet assembly including a plurality of outer peripheral magnets surrounding an inner peripheral magnet.

A vacuum apparatus to deposit a compound layer on at least one plate shaped substrate by sputtering. The apparatus including a vacuum chamber with side walls around a central axis. The chamber includes at least one inlet for a process gas, at least one inlet for an inert gas, a substrate handling opening, a pedestal including an electrostatic chuck formed as a substrate support in a central lower area of a sputter compartment, a magnetron sputter source including the target at the frontside and a magnet-system at the backside of the source, an anode looping around the target and at least an upper part of the pedestal and a pump compartment connected to a bottom of the sputter compartment by a flow labyrinth. A vacuum pump system is connected to the pump compartment.

A magnetron sputtering system includes a substrate mounted within a vacuum chamber. A plurality of cathode assemblies includes a first set of cathode assemblies and a second set of cathode assemblies, and is configured for reactive sputtering. Each cathode assembly includes a target comprising sputterable material and has an at least partially exposed planar sputtering surface. A target support is configured to support the target in the vacuum chamber and rotate the target relative to the vacuum chamber about a target axis. A magnetic field source includes a magnet array. A cathode assemblies controller assembly is operative to actuate the first set of cathode assemblies without actuating the second set of cathode assemblies, and to actuate the second set of cathode assemblies without actuating the first set of cathode assemblies.

The present invention provides a magnetron system comprising a baseplate assembly that defines a housing portion and a power feedthrough. A magnet assembly and a segmented target assembly are disposed within the housing portion. The segmented target assembly has an inner target segment having a plurality of target tiles. A plurality of electrical contacts are in electrical communication with the power feedthrough, wherein each electrical contact of the plurality of electrical contacts electrically contacts a respective target tile of the plurality of target tiles such that power is delivered from each electrical contact of the plurality of electrical contacts to each respective target tile of the plurality of target tiles.

A magnet unit for a magnetron sputtering apparatus is disposed above the target has: a yoke made of magnetic material and is disposed to lie opposite to the target; and plural pieces of magnets disposed on a lower surface of the yoke, wherein a leakage magnetic field in which a line passing through a position where the vertical component of the magnetic field becomes zero is closed in an endless manner, is caused to locally act on such a lower space of the target as is positioned between the center of the target and a periphery thereof, the magnet unit being driven for rotation about the center of the target. In a predetermined position of the yoke there is formed a recessed groove in a circumferentially elongated manner along an imaginary circle with the center of the target serving as a center.

A high density plasma processing apparatus. The apparatus comprising: a process chamber containing a gaseous medium; a length of antenna extending through the process chamber; a housing enclosing the antenna from the process chamber; and one or more magnets. In use, the antenna excites the gaseous medium within the process chamber to generate a plasma; and wherein the one or more magnets are configured such that the plasma is propagated as a sheet across the process chamber in an orthogonal direction relative to the length of the antenna.

A method of generating and processing a uniform high density plasma sheet. The method comprising generating a plasma within a chamber using plasma source; and within the same chamber containing and shaping the plasma using magnetic and/or electrostatic fields. The plasma is propagated as a uniform high density sheet within the chamber.

Sputter depositing a metallic layer on a substrate in the fabrication of a resonator device includes providing a magnetron sputtering apparatus comprising a chamber, a substrate support disposed within the chamber, a target made from a metallic material, and a plasma generating device, wherein the substrate support and the target are separated by a distance of 10 cm or less; supporting the substrate on the substrate support; performing a DC magnetron sputtering step that comprises sputtering the metallic material from the target onto the substrate so as to form a metallic layer on the substrate, wherein during the DC magnetron sputtering step the chamber has a pressure of at least 6 mTorr of a noble gas, the target is supplied with a power having a power density of at least 6 W/cm.sup.2, and the substrate has a temperature in the range of 200-600° C.

A photovoltaic cell device and a manufacturing method of a template thereof are provided. The manufacturing method of the template of the photovoltaic cell device includes the steps of providing a substrate and a target disposed opposite to each other in a chamber, applying an unbalanced magnetic field, and generating a plasma in the chamber to form a sputtered layer on the substrate. The plasma extends to an area proximate to the substrate due to the unbalanced magnetic field to assist the crystallization of the sputtered layer, so that the sputtered layer has a single crystalline or a single crystalline-like structure.

A film formation apparatus includes a target containing a magnetic material, a support that supports a substrate and locates the substrate in an arrangement region opposing the target, and a magnetic field formation unit located at a side of the arrangement region opposite to the target. The magnetic field formation unit forms a horizontal magnetic field parallel to an oscillation direction, which is one direction extending along the substrate, at a side of the arrangement region where the target is located. The magnetic field formation unit oscillates the horizontal magnetic field in the oscillation direction at least between one end of the arrangement region and another end of the arrangement region in the oscillation direction.