There is described an intaglio printing plate coating apparatus comprising a vacuum chamber having an inner space adapted to receive at least one intaglio printing plate to be coated, a vacuum system coupled to the vacuum chamber adapted to create vacuum in the inner space of the vacuum chamber, and a physical vapour deposition (PVD) system adapted to perform deposition of wear-resistant coating material under vacuum onto an engraved surface of the intaglio printing plate, which physical vapour deposition system includes at least one coating material target comprising a source of the wear-resistant coating material to be deposited onto the engraved surface of the intaglio printing plate. The vacuum chamber is arranged so that the intaglio printing plate to be coated sits substantially vertically in the inner space of the vacuum chamber with its engraved surface facing the at least one coating material target. The intaglio printing plate coating apparatus further comprises a movable carrier located within the inner space of the vacuum chamber and adapted to support and cyclically move the intaglio printing plate in front of and past the at least one coating material target.

A sputtering cathode includes a magnet having a body of length L1 defining a north magnetic pole at a first end of the body and a south magnetic pole at a second, opposite end of the body. A sputtering target of length L2 surrounds the body of the magnet, but not ends of the magnet.

There is described an intaglio printing plate coating apparatus (1) comprising a vacuum chamber (3) having an inner space (30) adapted to receive at least one intaglio printing plate (10) to be coated, a vacuum system (4) coupled to the vacuum chamber (3) adapted to create vacuum in the inner space (30) of the vacuum chamber (3), and a physical vapour deposition (PVD) system (5) adapted to perform deposition of wear-resistant coating material under vacuum onto an engraved surface (10a) of the intaglio printing plate (10), which physical vapour deposition system (5) includes at least one coating material target (51, 52) comprising a source of the wear-resistant coating material to be deposited onto the engraved surface (10a) of the intaglio printing plate (10). The vacuum chamber (3) is arranged so that the intaglio printing plate (10) to be coated sits substantially vertically in the inner space (30) of the vacuum chamber (3) with its engraved surface (10a) facing the at least one coating material target (51, 52). The intaglio printing plate coating apparatus (1) further comprises a movable carrier (6) located within the inner space (30) of the vacuum chamber (3) and adapted to support and cyclically move the intaglio printing plate (10) in front of and past the at least one coating material target (51, 52).

In an apparatus and related method, a substrate that has multiple facets is held in a chamber of a plasma reactor that has multiple plasma cavities. The substrate is positioned by a transport arrangement with each plasma cavity of the plasma reactor aligned to a facet of the substrate. A plasma is generated in each plasma cavity, to apply simultaneous plasma processing to multiple facets of the substrate.

A racetrack-shaped magnetic-field-generating apparatus for magnetron sputtering comprising a linear portion and corner portions, the linear portion comprising a magnetic base, a center permanent magnet disposed on its surface, and side permanent magnets disposed on both sides thereof with a gap; the center and side permanent magnets being vertically magnetized with opposite polarities; the corner portions comprising a non-magnetic base, a center magnetic pole member disposed on its surface, a semicircular or semi-polygonal, peripheral magnetic pole member, and plural permanent magnets arranged between both magnetic pole members with their magnetization directions in parallel to a target surface; and the magnetic poles of plural permanent magnets opposing the center magnetic pole member having the same polarity as those of the center permanent magnet opposing the target.

In some embodiments, the present disclosure relates to a plasma processing system having a magnetron that provides a symmetric magnetic track through a combination of vibrational and rotational motion. The disclosed magnetron has a magnetic element that generates a magnetic field. The magnetic element is attached to an elastic element connected between the magnetic element and a rotational shaft that rotates the magnetic element about a center of the sputtering target. The elastic element may vary its length during rotation of the magnetic element to change the radial distance between the rotational shaft and the magnetic element. The resulting magnetic track enables concurrent motion of the magnetic element in both an angular direction and a radial direction. Such motion enables a symmetric magnetic track that provides good wafer uniformity and a short deposition time.

A sputter system for applying a coating on a substrate is described. The sputter system comprises at least two cylindrical sputter units for the joint sputtering of a single coating. Each sputter unit comprising an elongated magnet configuration and at least one elongated magnet configuration comprising a plurality of magnet structures and magnet structure control systems along the length direction of the elongated magnet configuration. At least one magnet structure is adjustable in position and/or shape by a magnet structure control system, while a sputter target is mounted on the sputter unit.

An apparatus has a keeper plate with a keeper plate outer perimeter. An annular magnet array with an annular magnet array outer perimeter is coincident with the keeper plater outer perimeter. An inner top magnet is positioned on a centerline of a first side of the keeper plate and an inner bottom magnet is positioned on the centerline of a second side of the keeper plate. The inner top magnet is of a first magnetic orientation and the annular magnet array and the inner bottom magnet have a second magnetic orientation opposite the first magnetic orientation to form a magnetic field environment that provides plasma confinement of ionizing electrons which causes a gas operative as a reactive gas and sputter gas to become ionized and subsequently be directed to a target cathode while simultaneously causing the ionization of sputtered species which are dispersed across a substrate.

Apparatus and methods for controlling plasma profiles during PVD deposition processes are disclosed. Some embodiments utilize EM coils placed above the target to control the plasma profile during deposition.

Beam plasma source enhanced magnetron sputtering, is provided. An aspect of the present apparatus and method of use employs a magnetron apparatus including: a vacuum chamber; reactive gas; a workpiece substrate; and a magnetron which includes spaced apart magnetron magnets and a sputter target located adjacent to the magnets with a primary axis of the magnetron being offset from a nominal plane of the workpiece substrate by 20-70; and an ion source which includes an anode, a cathode, and ion source magnets. In one configuration, an ion emission centerline of an ion source is substantially perpendicular to a nominal facing surface or plane of a workpiece substrate, and in a second configuration, the ion emission centerline is offset angled by 20-80 from the nominal surface or plane of the substrate. In another aspect of the present magnetron apparatus and method, a sputter target has an axis with an offset angle 35-50 relative to a workpiece substrate surface, and an ion source has an ion emission centerline substantially perpendicular to the workpiece substrate surface.