JP2010189672A - Target assembly unit and sputtering apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a sputtering apparatus capable of achieving the space-saving compared with a conventional sputtering apparatus without impairing the maintainability, and a target assembly unit used for the sputtering apparatus. <P>SOLUTION: The target assembly unit 110 comprises a target 36 for sputtering, and a backing plate 35 in contact with a back side of the target 36. The backing plate 35 is constituted of a joined part 35B with the target 36 being joined therewith, and an annular circumferential edge 35A surrounding the joined part 35B viewed from above. The contour of the circumferential edge 35A of the backing plate 35 is constituted of a straight line part 35N parallel to the virtual straight line 200 passing through the center of the backing plate 35, and a curved part 35W extending from both ends of the straight line part 35N. The width dimension L1 of the straight line part 35N of the backing plate 35 is shorter than the width dimension L2 on the virtual straight line 200 of the backing plate 35. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a target assembly unit and a sputtering apparatus.

  When ions in the vacuum (for example, Ar ions) collide with the target, the atoms of the target jump out and can be attached to the substrate facing the target. Such a sputtering technique has been well known in the past and has become a basic technique used in manufacturing processes of semiconductor elements, LCDs and the like.

  On the other hand, there is a technique capable of forming a cylindrical plasma flow into a large-area sheet-like plasma flow (hereinafter referred to as “sheet plasma”) by the action of a strong repulsive magnetic field (see Patent Document 1). Then, when this sheet plasma is guided to a vacuum film forming chamber in which a target and a substrate are arranged, a large area film can be formed by a sputtering technique using charged particles (positive ions) in the sheet plasma (see Patent Document 2). .

  By the way, a metal back plate slightly larger than the outer dimension of the target is usually joined to the back surface of a target such as aluminum, chrome, or copper used for sputtering technology. It has an electrode function and a cooling function. In this case, if the peripheral edge of the back plate can be fixed to the wall of the vacuum film formation chamber by an appropriate fixing means (such as fastening bolts), the target can be easily removed from the vacuum film formation chamber together with the back plate using this fixing means. It is convenient because it can be removed and replaced.

Japanese Patent Publication No. 4-23400 JP 2005-179767 A

  Incorporation of the above-mentioned target / back plate assembly (hereinafter referred to as “target assembly unit”) into the sputtering apparatus achieves a balance between space saving of the apparatus and maintainability of the apparatus (efficiency in replacement work). It may be difficult.

  For example, a pair of electromagnetic coils having a common central axis are opposed to each other at a desired gap on both sides of a vacuum film forming chamber of a sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus, so that an in-plane spread of a large-area sheet plasma can be achieved. Are in place.

  For this reason, in order to detach the target assembly unit from the vacuum film formation chamber without removing the electromagnetic coil, it is necessary for the target assembly unit to pass through the gap between the pair of electromagnetic coils due to the configuration of the apparatus. That is, if the gap between the pair of electromagnetic coils is narrowed for the purpose of saving the space of the apparatus, the target assembly unit may not be smoothly attached or detached due to interference between the target assembly unit and the electromagnetic coil. In particular, in a sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus, once the electromagnetic coil is removed, the reproducibility of the sheet plasma distribution is lost, and as a result, adjustment work is troublesome and it is often difficult to set optimum conditions.

  Therefore, in light of the above-mentioned problems, the present inventors consider that it is necessary to review the shape of the target assembly unit that can achieve both the maintainability of the apparatus and the space saving of the apparatus. As far as the inventors of the present invention are aware, there is no known document that describes the design guidelines for the target assembly unit.

  This invention is made | formed in view of such a situation, and it aims at providing the sputtering device which can attain space saving compared with the conventional sputtering device, without impairing maintainability. Another object of the present invention is to provide a target assembly unit used in such a sputtering apparatus.

In order to solve the above problems, the present invention provides a sputtering target,
A backing plate in contact with the back surface of the target,
In the plan view of the backing plate, the backing plate is configured by a joint portion to which the target is joined and an annular peripheral portion surrounding the joint portion, and the outer shape of the peripheral portion of the backing plate is the backing plate. It is formed by a straight line portion parallel to an imaginary straight line passing through the center of the plate and a curved line portion extending from both ends of the straight line portion,
Provided is a target assembly unit in which a width dimension of the backing plate at the straight portion is shorter than a width dimension of the backing plate on the virtual straight line.

  In this specification, for the sake of convenience, as described above, such a back plate of the target is referred to as a “backing plate”, and a joined body including the target and the back plate is referred to as a “target assembly unit”.

  In the target assembly unit of the present invention, the target may be a circular plate. The backing plate may be an oval plate material arranged concentrically with the target.

Further, the present invention comprises a vacuum film forming chamber whose inside is reduced in pressure by a vacuum pump, and a pair of first magnetic field generating means sandwiching the vacuum film forming chamber and facing opposite poles,
The peripheral portion of the target assembly unit described above is mounted on the wall of the vacuum film formation chamber, and the target of the target assembly unit is exposed to the inside of the vacuum film formation chamber,
A sputtering apparatus is provided in which a gap distance between the pair of first magnetic field generating means is longer than a width dimension of the linear portion of the backing plate.

  In the sputtering apparatus of the present invention, it is preferable that the distance between the pair of first magnetic field generating means is shorter than the width dimension of the backing plate on the virtual straight line.

  In the sputtering apparatus of the present invention, the first magnetic field generating means may be an electromagnetic coil, and the target assembly unit may be arranged so that the linear portion is parallel to the coil surface of the electromagnetic coil.

  When the target assembly unit is detached from the vacuum film formation chamber, the target assembly unit may pass through the gap.

  With the above configuration, the distance between the pair of first magnetic field generating means (for example, electromagnetic coils) can be made shorter than the width dimension on the imaginary straight line of the backing plate. For this reason, in the sputtering apparatus of this invention, compared with the conventional sheet plasma system sputtering apparatus, space saving of an apparatus can be achieved. In other words, if the size of the vacuum film formation chamber is the same, a large-area target can be placed in the vacuum film formation chamber. Further, the distance between the pair of first magnetic field generating means (for example, electromagnetic coils) can be made longer than the width dimension of the linear portion of the backing plate. For this reason, in the sputtering apparatus of this invention, the maintainability of an apparatus is not impaired.

In the sputtering apparatus of the present invention, charged particle flow forming means capable of forming a charged particle flow by discharge between the anode and the cathode,
A transport chamber for transporting the charged particle stream emitted from the charged particle stream forming means;
A pair of second magnetic field generating means in which the magnetic poles face each other,
The transport chamber is configured so that the charged particle flow emitted from the charged particle flow forming means can be deformed into a sheet shape from a magnetic field created by the pair of second magnetic field generating means,
The sheet-like charged particle flow may be guided from the transport chamber to the inside of the vacuum film formation chamber.

  The second magnetic field generating means may be a bar magnet, and the target assembly unit may be arranged so that the linear portion is parallel to the axial direction of the bar magnet.

  As described above, the present invention matches well with a sputtering technique using a sheet plasma method capable of increasing the area of a target, and is therefore advantageous when applied to a sheet plasma sputtering apparatus.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a sputtering apparatus capable of saving space as compared with a conventional sputtering apparatus without impairing maintainability. Moreover, according to this invention, the target assembly unit used for such a sputtering device is also obtained.

It is the schematic which showed one structural example of the sputtering apparatus of the sheet plasma system by embodiment of this invention. It is the figure which showed typically the example of 1 structure of the target assembly unit used for the sputtering device by embodiment of this invention. In (a), the external appearance of the target assembly unit when the target assembly unit is viewed in plan from the thickness direction (Y direction) is shown. In (b), the cross section of the target assembly unit along the BB line of (a) is shown. It is an expanded sectional view of the dovetail groove part V1 of the annular groove of FIG. It is the figure which showed typically the example of arrangement | positioning to the sputtering device of the target assembly unit by embodiment of this invention.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a configuration example of a sheet plasma sputtering apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  Here, for convenience, as shown in FIG. 1 (the same applies to FIGS. 2 and 4 to be described later), the direction of plasma transport is taken in the Z direction, perpendicular to the Z direction, and the bar magnets 24A and 24B (described later). The configuration of the sputtering apparatus 100 will be described with the magnetization direction taken as the Y direction and the direction perpendicular to both the Z direction and the Y direction taken as the X direction.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the sputtering apparatus 100 of the present embodiment has a plasma gun 40 (charged) that forms a discharge plasma flow (charged particle flow) at a high density by discharge between a cathode C (described later) and an anode A (described later). Particle flow forming means) and a plasma gun power source 50 capable of supplying electric power for generating discharge to the plasma gun 40.

As shown in FIG. 1, the plasma gun 40 includes a cathode unit 41 and a pair of intermediate electrodes G ₁ and G ₂ .

The cathode unit 41 includes a cylindrical glass tube 41A made of heat-resistant glass and a disc-shaped lid member 41B, and the inside of the cathode unit 41 functions as a discharge space. The glass tube 41A is suitable fixing means (such as a fastening bolt; not shown) by, are arranged in the airtight between the intermediate electrode G ₁ and the lid member 41B. Therefore, the plasma generated in the discharge space can be drawn out from the cathode unit 41 through the through hole (not shown) of the intermediate electrode G ₁ .

The lid member 41B has a cathode C made of lanthanum hexaboride (LaB ₆ ) capable of emitting thermal electrons for inducing discharge. The lid member 41B is provided with means (not shown) for supplying a discharge gas (for example, argon gas) for discharge ionization.

As shown in FIG. 1, the above-described plasma gun power source 50 is disposed corresponding to each of the power generation unit 70 that can supply power to the plasma gun 40 and each of the intermediate electrodes G ₁ and G ₂ , and the intermediate electrode G _1. , Resistor elements R ₁ and R ₂ for limiting the current flowing through G ₂ .

The intermediate electrode G ₁ is connected to the power generation unit 70 via the resistance element R ₁ so that auxiliary discharge (glow discharge) can be appropriately maintained between the intermediate electrode G ₁ and the cathode C in the discharge space of the plasma gun 40. Further, the intermediate electrode G ₂ is connected to the power generation unit 70 via the resistance element R ₂ so that auxiliary discharge (glow discharge) can be appropriately maintained between the intermediate electrode G ₂ and the cathode C in the discharge space of the plasma gun 40. .

In this glow discharge, supply of charged particles (Ar ⁺ and electrons in this case) to the discharge space of the plasma gun 40 is performed by secondary electron emission that occurs when Ar ⁺ collides with the cathode C and argon ionization by electrons, Thereby, discharge plasma as an aggregate of charged particles is formed in the discharge space of the plasma gun 40. Thereafter, the plasma gun 40 makes a transition to main discharge (arc discharge) based on thermionic emission that occurs when the cathode C is heated. As described above, the plasma gun 40 is a pressure gradient gun that enables high-density discharge between the cathode C and the anode A by low-voltage and large-current arc discharge based on the plasma gun power supply 50.

  As described above, a cylindrical arc discharge plasma flow (hereinafter referred to as “cylindrical plasma 22”) having a substantially equal density distribution with respect to the transport center in the Z direction is applied to the first flange portion 20A of the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20. It is drawn out to the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20 through the formed passage.

  Next, the configuration of the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20 of the sputtering apparatus 100 and its peripheral configuration will be described.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20 (sheet plasma transport chamber) has a sheet plasma transport space 21 (hereinafter referred to as “sheet plasma transport space 21”) that can be decompressed.

  Around the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20, a first electromagnetic coil 23 (air core coil) that surrounds the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20 and exerts a propulsive force in the Z direction of the columnar plasma 22 is disposed.

  Note that the winding of the first electromagnetic coil 23 is energized in a direction in which the cathode C side is the S pole and the anode A side is the N pole.

  Further, a pair of square bar magnets 24A and 24B (permanent magnets; a pair of second magnetic fields are generated) on the front side in the Z direction (side closer to the anode A) of the first electromagnetic coil 23. Means) are arranged at a predetermined interval in the Y direction so as to sandwich the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20 (sheet plasma transport space 21). Here, the N poles (the same poles) of these bar magnets 24A and 24B face each other.

  Based on the interaction between the coil magnetic field formed in the sheet plasma transport space 21 by the first electromagnetic coil 23 and the magnet magnetic field formed in the sheet plasma transport space 21 by the bar magnets 24A and 24B, the cylindrical plasma 22 It is transformed into a uniform sheet-like plasma flow (hereinafter referred to as “sheet plasma 27”) that extends along an XZ plane (hereinafter referred to as “main surface S”) including the transport center in the transport direction (Z direction). The method for forming the sheet plasma 27 by the above magnetic field is already known. Therefore, this detailed description is omitted here.

  In this way, the sheet plasma 27 passes through the slit-shaped passage 28 formed between the second flange portion 20B of the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20 and the wall portion of the vacuum film formation chamber 30, as shown in FIG. To the vacuum film forming chamber 30.

  Next, the configuration of the vacuum film forming chamber 30 of the sputtering apparatus 100 will be described.

The vacuum film forming chamber 30 corresponds to a film forming chamber that releases the material of the target 36 (for example, copper) as sputtered particles by collision energy of Ar ⁺ (argon positive ions) in the sheet plasma 27. The vacuum film forming chamber 30 has a columnar film forming space 31 and is made of a conductive material (for example, a metal such as aluminum alloy or stainless steel), and is shown in FIG. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and when a conductive material is not used as a constituent material, it may not be grounded. The film formation space 31 is evacuated by a vacuum pump 36 such as a turbo pump through an exhaust port that can be opened and closed by a valve 37. As a result, the deposition space 31 is quickly depressurized to a degree of vacuum that allows a sputtering process.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the target assembly unit 110 is fixed to an upper wall portion 30 </ b> A of the vacuum film formation chamber 30 by appropriate fixing means (fastening bolts or the like). The target 36 is arranged in the vacuum film formation chamber 30 so that the target 36 of the target assembly unit 110 is exposed to the film formation space 31 of the vacuum film formation chamber 30 in the fixed state of the target assembly unit 110. .

  On the other hand, the substrate 34B is mounted on the substrate holder 34A.

  In this way, the target 36 and the substrate 34 </ b> B are opposed to each other in the film formation space 31 in a coaxial manner with the sheet plasma 27 being sandwiched at a certain suitable distance in the thickness direction of the sheet plasma 27.

  In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the target 36 is applied with appropriate power by a direct current or high frequency bias power source 52.

With such a bias voltage, Ar ⁺ in the sheet plasma 27 is attracted toward the target 36, and Ar ⁺ collides with the target 36. Then, by this collision energy, sputtered particles are emitted from the target 36 toward the substrate 34B.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, appropriate power (for example, RF high frequency power in the case of a high frequency power source) is applied to the substrate 34B by a DC or high frequency bias power source 51.

Thereby, the sputtered particles (for example, Cu ⁺ ) ionized by the action of the sheet plasma 27 when crossing the sheet plasma 27 can be appropriately drawn into the substrate 34B by the above-described RF high frequency power self-bias.

  Next, the configuration around the vacuum film forming chamber 30 will be described.

  An anode A is disposed on the side of the vacuum film forming chamber 30 opposite to the plasma gun 40, and a passage 29 for the sheet plasma 27 is provided between the side wall of the vacuum film forming chamber 30 and the anode A. Yes.

  The anode A is given a predetermined reference potential to the cathode unit 41 of the plasma gun 40. As a result, the anode A has a role of collecting charged particles (particularly electrons) in the sheet plasma 27 based on arc discharge between the cathode C and the anode A.

  Further, on the back surface of the anode A (the surface opposite to the surface facing the cathode C), a permanent magnet 38 having an S pole on the anode A side and an N pole on the opposite side is disposed.

  The sheet plasma 27 has a width so as to suppress diffusion in the width direction (plasma spreading direction) of the sheet plasma 27 toward the anode A by the magnetic field lines along the main surface S that exits from the N pole of the permanent magnet 38 and enters the S pole. Converge in the direction. As a result, the charged particles of the sheet plasma 27 are properly collected by the anode A.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 1, a pair of second electromagnetic coil 32 and third electromagnetic coil 33 (both air-core coils; a pair of first magnetic field generating means) are provided with a common central axis. And the 2nd electromagnetic coil 32 and the 3rd electromagnetic coil 33 pinch | interpose the film-forming space 31 of the vacuum film-forming chamber 30, and different magnetic poles (here, the 2nd electromagnetic coil 32 is N pole and the 3rd electromagnetic coil 33 is S poles) face each other.

  The positions of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33 are set from the viewpoint of saving the space of the device within a range that does not impair the maintainability of the device, and will be described in detail later.

  The sheet plasma 27 is shaped by the coil magnetic field created by the pair of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33 so as to appropriately suppress the diffusion in the plasma spreading direction.

  Note that a conventional vacuum seal (such as an O-ring) and fastening means (fastening bolts) are provided between the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20 and the vacuum film formation chamber 30 and between the sheet plasma deformation chamber 20 and the plasma gun 40 described above. Etc.), but illustration and description of such conventional means are omitted here.

  Next, the configuration of the target assembly unit, which is a characteristic part of the embodiment of the present invention, will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 2 is a diagram schematically showing a configuration example of the target assembly unit used in the sputtering apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2A shows the appearance of the target assembly unit 110 when the target assembly unit 110 is viewed in plan from the thickness direction (Y direction). FIG. 2B shows a cross section of the target assembly unit 110 along the line BB in FIG.

  3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of the dovetail part V1 of the annular groove of FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the target assembly unit 110 includes a circular and plate-like target 36 for sputtering, and an oval (oval) backing plate 35 arranged concentrically with the target 36. The backing plate 35 is a plate material that is in contact with the back surface of the target 36 that is slightly larger than the outer dimension of the target 36 when viewed in plan (viewed from the Y direction). Further, the bonding between the backing plate 35 and the target 36 is performed using a melt bonding method or a solid phase diffusion bonding method using an In-based material.

  Thus, since the backing plate 35 is configured by the joint portion 35B between the target 36 and the annular peripheral portion 35A surrounding the joint portion 35B, the joint portion 35B and the peripheral portion 35A will be described below. Each configuration will be described in detail.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the backing plate 35 has a shape of a flange with a flange, and the flange corresponds to the peripheral edge 35 </ b> A of the backing plate 35, and a portion protruding from the flange in the Y direction is This corresponds to the joint 35B of the backing plate 35.

  As shown in FIG. 2, the target 36 is bonded to the entire area of the bonding portion 35 </ b> B of the backing plate 35. Therefore, the joint portion 35B of the backing plate 35 has a circular shape that is the same shape as the target 36 in plan view.

  As shown in FIG. 2A, the peripheral edge portion 35A of the backing plate 35 includes a pair of straight portions 35N and a pair of curved portions 35W extending from both ends of the pair of straight portions 35N. By the portion 35N and the curved portion 35W, the outer shape of the backing plate 35 in a plan view is formed in an oval shape (oval shape). That is, the outer shape of the peripheral edge portion 35A of the backing plate 35 is defined by a straight line portion 35N passing through the center O of the backing plate 35 and extending in the X direction and parallel to the virtual straight line 200, and curved portions 35W extending from both ends of the straight line portion 35N. When the part of both sides in the Z direction of the circular virtual plate material is cut out along the X direction, the outer shape of the backing plate 35 is the same in plan view.

  With the above configuration, the width dimension L1 of the backing plate 35 at the straight portion 35N is shorter than the width dimension L2 of the backing plate 35 on the virtual straight line 200. Therefore, the sputtering apparatus 100 of this embodiment is advantageous because it can save the space of the apparatus as compared with the conventional sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus without impairing the maintainability of the apparatus. The reason for this will be described later.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 2A, an annular groove 35V for fitting an O-ring (not shown) is formed in the peripheral portion 35A of the backing plate 35, and a plurality of through holes are provided outside the annular groove 35V. A hole 35H is formed. The through holes 35H are formed at equal intervals along the circumferential direction in the curved portion 35W of the peripheral portion 35A, whereas the arrangement region of the through holes 35H is cut off in the straight portion 35N of the peripheral portion 35A. . That is, in the straight portion 35N, there is a portion where the through hole 35H is not formed.

  On the other hand, in a state in which the target assembly unit 110 is mounted on the upper wall portion 30A of the vacuum film forming chamber 30, a threaded portion (not shown) is formed on the portion of the upper wall portion 30A (see FIG. 1) facing the through hole 35H. ), And the peripheral edge portion 35A and the upper wall portion 30A of the backing plate 35 are appropriately fixed by fastening bolts (not shown) fitted into the through holes and screwed. Thereby, the vacuum sealing by the O-ring based on the fastening force between the backing plate 35 and the upper wall portion 30A by the fastening bolt is appropriately performed, and the airtightness in the vacuum film forming chamber 30 is ensured.

  When the fastening bolt is released, the target assembly unit 110 can be detached from the vacuum film formation chamber 30, and the target 36 (target assembly unit 110) can be replaced.

  Furthermore, the backing plate 35 is made of a material suitable for the material of the target 36, and is preferably made of a metal such as stainless steel, aluminum, titanium, or copper. Thereby, the electrode function of the target 36 can be exhibited.

  As shown in FIG. 2B, a cooling groove 35C is formed on the back surface side of the backing plate 35, and the target 36 can be cooled to an appropriate temperature by flowing cooling water through the cooling groove 35C. In this case, a plate P (see FIG. 4) is disposed on the back surface side of the backing plate 35 so as to keep the cooling groove 35C watertight, and the surface roughness of the contact surface between the two can ensure water sealability. It has been finished.

  However, such a cooling groove 35C does not necessarily have to be formed. If this is not necessary, the plate P can be eliminated, and the number of parts of the target assembly unit 110 can be reduced.

  Moreover, although the annular groove 35V is formed in an elongated rectangular cross section over almost the entire region, a dovetail groove process may be performed on a part of the annular groove 35V as shown in FIG. The dovetail groove portion V1 is set to a size that allows a tool or the like to be inserted when the O-ring is taken out from the annular groove 35V, whereby the O-ring can be taken out efficiently.

  Next, an example of the arrangement of the target assembly unit 110 when the target assembly unit 110 is mounted on the upper wall portion 30A of the vacuum film formation chamber 30 will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically illustrating an arrangement example of the target assembly unit in the sputtering apparatus according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  When the peripheral portion 35A of the target assembly unit 110 is mounted on (contacts with) the upper wall portion 30A of the vacuum film formation chamber 30 as shown in FIG. 4, the target 36 of the target assembly unit 110 is moved to the vacuum film formation chamber 30. It is exposed to the inside (film formation space 31).

  In the sputtering apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the target assembly unit 110 is arranged so that the straight portion 35N of the peripheral portion 35A is parallel to the coil surfaces 32A and 33A of the pair of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33. ing. In other words, the target assembly unit 110 is arranged such that the straight portion 35N is parallel to the axial direction of the bar magnets 24A and 25B (not shown in FIG. 4; see FIG. 1).

  As shown in FIG. 4, the distance L (coil interval) between the pair of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33 is set to be longer than the width dimension L1 of the linear portion 35N of the backing plate 35. Yes.

  Thereby, when the target assembly unit 110 is attached to and detached from the vacuum film forming chamber 30, the target assembly unit 110 can be passed through the gap between the pair of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33 in the Y direction. Convenient in maintainability. That is, when replacing the target assembly unit 110, it is not necessary to remove the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33, and the reproducibility of the sheet plasma distribution can be ensured, so that the maintainability of the apparatus is not impaired.

  In the present embodiment, since the outer shape of the backing plate 35 is formed in an oval shape (oval), as shown in FIG. 4, the distance L between the pair of second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33. Can be shorter than the width dimension L2 of the backing plate 35 on the virtual straight line 200. As a result, compared to the conventional sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus in which the distance L> the width dimension L2 is set in consideration of the maintainability of the apparatus, in the sputtering apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the distance L is set to the width dimension L1 <. Since the distance L <width dimension L2 can be shortened, the dimension of the vacuum film forming chamber 30 in the Z-axis direction can be shortened, and the entire apparatus can be downsized.

  Thereby, in the sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus 100 of this embodiment, the apparatus can be saved in space compared to the conventional sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus.

  In other words, in the conventional sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus, when the distance L between the pair of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33 is smaller than the width dimension L2, the target assembly unit is moved to the second and third electromagnetic coils. It is impossible to pass through the gap between the pair of 32 and 33 in the Y direction, and the maintainability of the apparatus is impaired.

  As described above, the target assembly unit 110 according to this embodiment includes the circular and plate-like target 36 and the backing plate 35 that is in contact with the back surface of the target 36 and is concentrically arranged with the target 36.

  Further, the backing plate 35 surrounds the joining portion 35B to which the target 36 is joined, and the joining portion 35B, and is fixed to the upper wall portion 30A of the vacuum film forming chamber 30 when viewed in plan from the thickness direction of the backing plate 35. And an annular peripheral portion 35A in which a through hole 35H through which a fixing means (fastening bolt or the like) is passed is formed.

  The outer shape of the peripheral portion 35A of the backing plate 35 includes a pair of straight portions 35N parallel to a virtual straight line 200 passing through the center O of the backing plate 35, and a pair of curved portions 35W extending from both ends of the pair of straight portions 35N. Therefore, the width dimension L1 of the backing plate 35 at the straight portion 35N is shorter than the width dimension L2 of the backing plate 35 on the virtual straight line 200.

  Such a target assembly unit 110 is incorporated in the sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus 100, and the linear portion 35N of the backing plate 35 is formed with the coil surfaces 32A and 33A of the pair of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33 of the sputtering apparatus 100. The target assembly unit 110 is arranged so as to be parallel.

  With the above configuration, in the sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the distance L between the pair of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33 is set to the width dimension L2 on the imaginary straight line 200 of the backing plate 35. Can be shorter. For this reason, the distance L between the pair of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33 can be shortened as compared with a conventional sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus, thereby saving the space of the apparatus. In other words, if the size of the vacuum film formation chamber 30 is the same, a large area target can be arranged in the vacuum film formation chamber. This matches well with a sheet plasma sputtering technique that can increase the target area.

Further, in the sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus 100, the distance L between the pair of the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33 is longer than the width dimension L1 of the linear portion 35N of the backing plate 35. For this reason, when replacing the target assembly unit 110, it is not necessary to remove the second and third electromagnetic coils 32 and 33, and the reproducibility of the sheet plasma distribution can be ensured, so that the maintainability of the apparatus is not impaired.
(Modification 1)
In the present embodiment, the example in which the target assembly unit 110 is incorporated in the sheet plasma type sputtering apparatus 100 has been described, but the scope of application of the present technology is not limited thereto. For example, the present technology can be applied even to an ion beam sputtering (IBS) apparatus.
(Modification 2)
In the sputtering apparatus 100 of the present embodiment, the example in which the backing plate 35 of the target assembly unit 110 is formed in an oval shape (oval shape) has been described. However, if the width dimension L1 is shorter than the width dimension L2 Other shapes may be used. For example, the shape of the backing plate 35 in plan view may be a bowl shape in which only a part of a circular plate is cut out in a straight line.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, the target assembly unit used for the sputtering apparatus which can take coexistence of maintainability and space saving is obtained. Therefore, this invention can be utilized for the target assembly unit of the sputtering apparatus of a sheet plasma system, for example.

20 Sheet plasma deformation chamber 20A First flange portion 20B Second flange portion 21 Sheet plasma transport space 22 Cylindrical plasma 23 First electromagnetic coils 24A, 24B Bar magnet (second magnetic field generating means)
27 Sheet plasma 28, 29 Passage 30 Vacuum film forming chamber 31 Film forming space 32 Second electromagnetic coil (first magnetic field generating means)
32A Coil surface 33 of the second electromagnetic coil 33 Third electromagnetic coil (first magnetic field generating means)
33A Coil surface 34A of third electromagnetic coil Substrate holder 34B Substrate 35 Backing plate 35A Peripheral portion 35B Joint portion 35C Cooling groove 35H Through hole 35V Annular groove 35N Linear portion 35W Curved portion 36 Target 36 Vacuum pump 37 Valve 38 Permanent magnet 40 Plasma Gun 41 Cathode unit 41A Glass tube 41B Lid member 50 Plasma gun power supply 51, 52 Bias power supply 70 Power generation unit 100 Sputtering device 110 Target assembly unit 200 Virtual straight line A Anode G ₁ , G ₂ Intermediate electrode C Cathode L Second and third width P plate R ₁ in a virtual straight line having a width dimension L2 backing plate in the linear portion of the gap distance L1 backing plate pairs of electromagnetic coils, R ₂ the resistance element S principal plane V1 ant groove

Claims (8)

A sputtering target;
A backing plate in contact with the back surface of the target,
In the plan view of the backing plate, the backing plate is configured by a joint portion to which the target is joined and an annular peripheral portion surrounding the joint portion, and the outer shape of the peripheral portion of the backing plate is the backing plate. It is formed by a straight line portion parallel to an imaginary straight line passing through the center of the plate and a curved line portion extending from both ends of the straight line portion,
A target assembly unit in which a width dimension of the backing plate at the straight line portion is shorter than a width dimension of the backing plate on the virtual straight line.   The target assembly unit according to claim 1, wherein the target is a circular plate, and the backing plate is an oval plate arranged concentrically with the target. A vacuum film forming chamber whose inside is reduced in pressure by a vacuum pump; and a pair of first magnetic field generating means sandwiching the vacuum film forming chamber and facing opposite poles,
The peripheral portion of the target assembly unit according to claim 1 or 2 is attached to a wall portion of the vacuum film formation chamber, and the target of the target assembly unit is exposed to the inside of the vacuum film formation chamber,
The sputtering apparatus in which the distance between the pair of first magnetic field generating means is longer than the width dimension of the linear portion of the backing plate.   The sputtering apparatus according to claim 3, wherein a distance between the pair of first magnetic field generating units is shorter than a width dimension of the backing plate on the virtual straight line. The first magnetic field generating means is an electromagnetic coil;
5. The sputtering apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the target assembly unit is disposed so that the straight line portion is parallel to a coil surface of the electromagnetic coil.   The sputtering apparatus according to claim 5, wherein the target assembly unit passes through the gap when the target assembly unit is attached to and detached from the vacuum film formation chamber. A charged particle flow forming means capable of forming a charged particle flow by discharge between the anode and the cathode;
A transport chamber for transporting the charged particle stream emitted from the charged particle stream forming means;
A pair of second magnetic field generating means in which the magnetic poles face each other,
The transport chamber is configured so that the charged particle flow emitted from the charged particle flow forming means can be deformed into a sheet shape from a magnetic field created by the pair of second magnetic field generating means,
The sputtering apparatus according to claim 3 or 4, wherein the sheet-like charged particle flow is guided from the transport chamber into the vacuum film formation chamber. The second magnetic field generating means is a bar magnet;
The sputtering apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the target assembly unit is arranged so that the linear portion is parallel to the axial direction of the bar magnet.

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