[ High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering (HIPIMS) – A New Tool ...

[
High Power Impulse Magnetron
Sputtering (HIPIMS) –
A New Tool for Interface
Engineering
A.Ehiasarian@shu.ac.uk
A. P. Ehiasarian
]

[
Motivation
• Goal: Improvement of adhesion of PVD coatings
• Objectives:
– Local epitaxial growth – METAL ION SOURCE
● efficient removal of surface oxides -> CLEAN
INTERFACE
● metal incorporation -> “DIFFUSION” BONDING
– Avoid droplets -> DEFECT-FREE COATINGS
– Avoid incorporation of Argon -> HIGH TOUGHNESS INTERFACE
]

[
100 Hz
High Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering
200 Wcm -2 n pl = 10 13 cm -3
]
active arc
suppression
Target area > 400 cm 2

[
In conventional
magnetron
discharges:
I = k U n
n = 5..10
HIPIMS exhibits
n = 1!
I-U Characteristic
]
n plasma =
10 13 cm -3
(Ehiasarian et al, Vacuum 65 (2002) 147)

[ Plasma Composition –OES-Chromium
(Ehiasarian et al, Vacuum 65 (2002) 147)
HIPIMS
Emission
from
Cr 1+ and
Cr 2+ metal ions
]
Cathode area = 1200 cm 2

[
Plasma Composition –OES-Titanium
HIPIMS
Emission
from
Ti 1+ and
Ti 2+ metal ions
]
Cathode area = 1200 cm 2

[
Temporal Evolution of HIPIMS Plasma-OES
]

[
Temporal Evolution of HIPIMS Plasma-Mass Spectroscopy
(Bohlmark et al, Thin Soild Films, 515 (2006) 1522)
]

]
[ Plasma Composition–Ion Current Density J s

[ Influence of HIPIMS Power on Plasma Composition
]

[
Ionisation of Cr in HIPIMS
Cr 0 slope 0.56
Cr 1+ slope 1.8
]

[
Ionisation of V in HIPIMS
]

[ Hauzer HTC 1000/4 ABS Batch Coater
]

[ Hauzer HTC 1000/4 ABS Batch Coater
HIPIMS Power Supply
AC (Advanced Converters)
]

[
]

[
Interface Chemistry-STEM-EDS and
Coating Adhesion-HIPIMS CrN
Scratch Test Critical Load on HSS = 85 N
(Ehiasarian et al, Surf Coat Technol 163-164 (2003) 267)
]

[
Interface – High Resolution-TEM
(Ehiasarian et al, J. Appl. Phys. 101, 054301 (2007)
]

[ Epitaxy at Interface- Selected Area Diffraction
(Ehiasarian et al, J. Appl. Phys. 101, 054301 (2007)
]

[
Coating Deposition
(Ehiasarian et al, Surf Coat Technol 163-164 (2003) 267)
]

[ CrN/NbN Nanoscale Multilayer Coating - Adhesion
(Ehiasarian et al, J. Appl. Phys 101, 054301 (2007))
]

[
Corrosion Performance-CrN/NbN on Mild Steel
(C. Reinhard et al., Thin Soild Films 515 (2007) 3685)
]

[
CrN/NbN – Salt Spray Test
]

[
Sliding Wear Resistance
(Ehiasarian et al, J. Vac. Sci. Technol., accepted for publication)
]

[
Impact Wear Craters
(Ehiasarian et al, Thin Soild Films 457 (2004) 270)
]

[
Conclusions
• HIPIMS has been implemented successfully on industrial scale
machines (cathode area >1200 cm2) with the help of an industrial size
power supply
• HIPIMS discharges produce metal ions charged up to 2+ for Ti, Cr and
Nb
• The metal ion-to-neutral ratio increases continuously as a function of
peak power
• Metal ion etching by HIPIMS promotes local epitaxial growth and
improves the adhesion of coatings without incorporation of droplets
• HIPIMS pre-treatment improves the corrosion performance due to
defect-free interface of CrN/NbN nanoscale multilayer films produced in
industrial scale machine
]

[
Further Reading
HIPIMS Plasma:
• High-current low-pressure quasi-stationery discharge in a magnetic field: experimental research -
Mozgrin D. V. (Moscow Eng. Phys. Inst., Russia); Fetisov I. K.; Khodachenko G. V. Source: Plasma Physics
Reports, v 21, n 5, May 1995, p 400-9
• A novel pulsed magnetron sputter technique utilizing very high target power densities - Kouznetsov,
V. (Dept. of Phys., Linkoping Univ., Sweden); Macak, K.; Schneider, J.M.; Helmersson, U.; Petrov, I. Source:
Surface and Coatings Technology, v 122, n 2-3, 15 Dec. 1999, p 290-3
• Evolution of the electron energy distribution and plasma parameters in a pulsed magnetron
discharge - Gudmundsson, J.T. (Sci. Inst., Iceland Univ., Reykjavik, Iceland); Alami, J.; Helmersson, U.
Source: Applied Physics Letters, v 78, n 22, 28 May 2001, p 3427-9
• Influence of high power densities on the composition of pulsed magnetron plasmas - Ehiasarian, A.P.
(Materials Research Institute, Sheffield Hallam University); New, R.; Munz, W.-D.; Hultman, L.; Helmersson, U.;
Kouznetsov, V. Source: Vacuum, v 65, n 2, Apr 19, 2002, p 147-154
• The ion energy distributions and ion flux composition from a high power impulse magnetron
sputtering discharge - Bohlmark, J. (IFM Material Physics, Linkoping University); Lattemann, M.;
Gudmundsson, J.T.; Ehiasarian, A.P.; Aranda Gonzalvo, Y.; Brenning, N.; Helmersson, U. Source: Thin Solid
Films, v 515, n 4, Dec 5, 2006, p 1522-1526
• Ionized physical vapor deposition (IPVD): A review of technology and applications - Helmersson, U.
(IFM Mater. Sci., Linkoping Univ., Sweden); Lattemann, M.; Bohlmark, J.; Ehiasarian, A.P.; Gudmundsson, J.T.
Source: Thin Solid Films, v 513, n 1-2, 14 Aug. 2006, p 1-24
]

[
HIPIMS Deposition
Further Reading
• High power pulsed magnetron sputtered CrNx films - Ehiasarian, A.P. (Mater. Res. Inst., Sheffield-
Hallam Univ., Sheffield, UK); Munz, W.-D.; Hultman, L.; Helmersson, U.; Petrov, I. Source: Surface &
Coatings Technology, v 163-164, 30 Jan. 2003, p 267-72
• On the deposition rate in a high power pulsed magnetron sputtering discharge - Alami, J. (Inst.
of Phys., RWTH Aachen Univ., Germany); Sarakinos, K.; Mark, G.; Wuttig, M. Source: Applied Physics
Letters, v 89, n 15, 9 Oct. 2006, p 154104-1-3
HIPIMS Interface Engineering
• CrAlYN/CrN superlattice coatings deposited by the combined high power impulse magnetron
sputtering/unbalanced magnetron sputtering technique - Hovsepian, P.Eh. (Nanotechnology
Centre for PVD Research, Materials and Engineering Research Institute, Sheffield Hallam University);
Reinhard, C.; Ehiasarian, A.P. Source: Surface and Coatings Technology, v 201, n 7 SPEC. ISS., Dec 20,
2006, p 4105-4110
• CrN/NbN superlattice structured coatings with enhanced corrosion resistance achieved by
high power impulse magnetron sputtering interface pre-treatment - Reinhard, C.
(Nanotechnology Centre for PVD Research, Materials and Engineering Research Institute, Sheffield Hallam
University); Ehiasarian, A.P.; Hovsepian, P.Eh. Source: Thin Solid Films, v 515, n 7-8, Feb 26, 2007, p
3685-3692
• Interface microstructure engineering by high power impulse magnetron sputtering for the
enhancement of adhesion - A. P. Ehiasarian, J. G. Wen, and I. Petrov, J. Appl. Phys. 101, 054301
(2007)
]