Classifications

• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
  • C22C—ALLOYS
  • C22C5/00—Alloys based on noble metals
  • C22C5/04—Alloys based on a platinum group metal
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F5/00—Manufacture of workpieces or articles from metallic powder characterised by the special shape of the product
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
  • C22C—ALLOYS
  • C22C1/00—Making non-ferrous alloys
  • C22C1/04—Making non-ferrous alloys by powder metallurgy
  • C22C1/0466—Alloys based on noble metals
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
  • C22C—ALLOYS
  • C22C28/00—Alloys based on a metal not provided for in groups C22C5/00 - C22C27/00
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
  • C22C—ALLOYS
  • C22C33/00—Making ferrous alloys
  • C22C33/02—Making ferrous alloys by powder metallurgy
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
  • C22C—ALLOYS
  • C22C38/00—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C22—METALLURGY; FERROUS OR NON-FERROUS ALLOYS; TREATMENT OF ALLOYS OR NON-FERROUS METALS
  • C22C—ALLOYS
  • C22C38/00—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys
  • C22C38/002—Ferrous alloys, e.g. steel alloys containing In, Mg, or other elements not provided for in one single group C22C38/001 - C22C38/60
• • C—CHEMISTRY; METALLURGY
  • C23—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; CHEMICAL SURFACE TREATMENT; DIFFUSION TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL; INHIBITING CORROSION OF METALLIC MATERIAL OR INCRUSTATION IN GENERAL
  • C23C—COATING METALLIC MATERIAL; COATING MATERIAL WITH METALLIC MATERIAL; SURFACE TREATMENT OF METALLIC MATERIAL BY DIFFUSION INTO THE SURFACE, BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION OR SUBSTITUTION; COATING BY VACUUM EVAPORATION, BY SPUTTERING, BY ION IMPLANTATION OR BY CHEMICAL VAPOUR DEPOSITION, IN GENERAL
  • C23C14/00—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material
  • C23C14/22—Coating by vacuum evaporation, by sputtering or by ion implantation of the coating forming material characterised by the process of coating
  • C23C14/34—Sputtering
  • C23C14/3407—Cathode assembly for sputtering apparatus, e.g. Target
  • C23C14/3414—Metallurgical or chemical aspects of target preparation, e.g. casting, powder metallurgy
• • G—PHYSICS
  • G11—INFORMATION STORAGE
  • G11B—INFORMATION STORAGE BASED ON RELATIVE MOVEMENT BETWEEN RECORD CARRIER AND TRANSDUCER
  • G11B5/00—Recording by magnetisation or demagnetisation of a record carrier; Reproducing by magnetic means; Record carriers therefor
  • G11B5/84—Processes or apparatus specially adapted for manufacturing record carriers
  • G11B5/851—Coating a support with a magnetic layer by sputtering
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01F—MAGNETS; INDUCTANCES; TRANSFORMERS; SELECTION OF MATERIALS FOR THEIR MAGNETIC PROPERTIES
  • H01F41/00—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing or assembling magnets, inductances or transformers; Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing materials characterised by their magnetic properties
  • H01F41/14—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing or assembling magnets, inductances or transformers; Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing materials characterised by their magnetic properties for applying magnetic films to substrates
  • H01F41/18—Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing or assembling magnets, inductances or transformers; Apparatus or processes specially adapted for manufacturing materials characterised by their magnetic properties for applying magnetic films to substrates by cathode sputtering
  • H01F41/183—Sputtering targets therefor
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
  • H01J37/00—Discharge tubes with provision for introducing objects or material to be exposed to the discharge, e.g. for the purpose of examination or processing thereof
  • H01J37/32—Gas-filled discharge tubes
  • H01J37/34—Gas-filled discharge tubes operating with cathodic sputtering
  • H01J37/3411—Constructional aspects of the reactor
  • H01J37/3414—Targets
  • H01J37/3426—Material
  • H01J37/3429—Plural materials
• • H—ELECTRICITY
  • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
  • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
  • H01J37/00—Discharge tubes with provision for introducing objects or material to be exposed to the discharge, e.g. for the purpose of examination or processing thereof
  • H01J37/32—Gas-filled discharge tubes
  • H01J37/34—Gas-filled discharge tubes operating with cathodic sputtering
  • H01J37/3488—Constructional details of particle beam apparatus not otherwise provided for, e.g. arrangement, mounting, housing, environment; special provisions for cleaning or maintenance of the apparatus
  • H01J37/3491—Manufacturing of targets
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F1/00—Metallic powder; Treatment of metallic powder, e.g. to facilitate working or to improve properties
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F1/00—Metallic powder; Treatment of metallic powder, e.g. to facilitate working or to improve properties
  • B22F1/05—Metallic powder characterised by the size or surface area of the particles
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F1/00—Metallic powder; Treatment of metallic powder, e.g. to facilitate working or to improve properties
  • B22F1/12—Metallic powder containing non-metallic particles
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F2304/00—Physical aspects of the powder
  • B22F2304/10—Micron size particles, i.e. above 1 micrometer up to 500 micrometer
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F2998/00—Supplementary information concerning processes or compositions relating to powder metallurgy
  • B22F2998/10—Processes characterised by the sequence of their steps
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F2999/00—Aspects linked to processes or compositions used in powder metallurgy
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F3/00—Manufacture of workpieces or articles from metallic powder characterised by the manner of compacting or sintering; Apparatus specially adapted therefor ; Presses and furnaces
  • B22F3/12—Both compacting and sintering
  • B22F3/14—Both compacting and sintering simultaneously
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F3/00—Manufacture of workpieces or articles from metallic powder characterised by the manner of compacting or sintering; Apparatus specially adapted therefor ; Presses and furnaces
  • B22F3/12—Both compacting and sintering
  • B22F3/14—Both compacting and sintering simultaneously
  • B22F3/15—Hot isostatic pressing
• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B22—CASTING; POWDER METALLURGY
  • B22F—WORKING METALLIC POWDER; MANUFACTURE OF ARTICLES FROM METALLIC POWDER; MAKING METALLIC POWDER; APPARATUS OR DEVICES SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR METALLIC POWDER
  • B22F9/00—Making metallic powder or suspensions thereof
  • B22F9/02—Making metallic powder or suspensions thereof using physical processes
  • B22F9/04—Making metallic powder or suspensions thereof using physical processes starting from solid material, e.g. by crushing, grinding or milling

Definitions

• the present invention relates to a nonmagnetic material-dispersed Fe—Pt based sputtering target suitable for forming a magnetic thin film in a magnetic recording medium.
• materials based on Co, Fe or Ni which is a ferromagnetic metal, are used as materials of magnetic thin films responsible for recording.
• Co—Cr based or Co—Cr—Pt based ferromagnetic alloys containing Co as a main component have been used for recording layers of hard disks employing a longitudinal magnetic recording system.
• composite materials in which nonmagnetic particles such as oxide and carbon are dispersed in the Co—Cr—Pt-based ferromagnetic alloy containing Co as a main component are widely used for recording layers of hard disks employing a perpendicular magnetic recording system which has been recently put into practical use.
• the magnetic thin films are often produced by sputtering the sputtering targets containing the above materials using a DC magnetron sputtering apparatus, in terms of high productivity.
• a Fe—Pt magnetic phase possessing a L1 0 structure is attracting attention as a material for ultrahigh density recording media.
• the Fe—Pt magnetic phase possessing the L1 0 structure is expected to be a material that is suitable for application of magnetic recording media, because the Fe—Pt magnetic phase has higher crystalline magnetic anisotropy as well as improved corrosion resistance and oxidation resistance.
• the Fe—Pt magnetic phase is used as the material for the ultrahigh density recording media, there is a need for development of technique for dispersing ordered Fe—Pt magnetic grains as dense as possible with uniform orientation, while magnetically isolating the ordered Fe—Pt magnetic grains.
• the granular structure magnetic thin film includes a structure in which the magnetic particles are magnetically insulated from each other by interposition of nonmagnetic materials.
• the granular structure magnetic thin film having the Fe—Pt magnetic phase is generally produced using a Fe—Pt based sputtering target.
• Fe—Pt film is formed by the sputtering method, Fe atoms and Pt atoms are randomly arranged to form irregular phases.
• a heating treatment at about 600° C. is required after forming the film.
• the temperature of the heat treatment can be decreased as low as possible, from the viewpoint of practicality.
• Patent Document 1 discloses that an amount of a residual gas component represented by an amount of residual oxygen is reduced in order to lower an annealing temperature required for ordering a film of an alloy such as a Fe—Pt alloy.
• an oxide, a carbide, a nitride or the like as a nonmagnetic material, it is not easy to control the amount of the gas component.
• Patent Document 2 discloses a method in which an Fe—Pt layer is deposited by a sputtering method, a sealing layer is then deposited on the Fe—Pt layer, annealing is then performed in a temperature range of from 400 to 800° C. to substantially obtain ordered Fe—Pt having a L1 0 phase, and the sealing layer is then removed.
• the method is intended to enable high temperature annealing, but it is not a technique for lowering the annealing temperature for ordering the Fe—Pt magnetic phase.
• Patent Document 3 discloses that an L1 0 type ordered alloy mixture thin film with added MgO can be produced at a lower film formation temperature than a mixture thin film with added SiO 2 or Al 2 O 3 .
• the art merely indicates that a heating temperature of a substrate during film formation is relatively low when MgO is added, and is not intended to lower the ordering temperature.
• Patent documents 4 and 5 describes an invention relating to a sputtering target for Fe—Pt based magnetic recording media. These inventions have been filed by the applicant of the present invention, and are excellent in that they can effectively suppress generation of particles due to detachment of carbon contained as a nonmagnetic material during sputtering. However, they do not mention the lowering of the ordering temperature.
• Patent Documents 6 and 7 also disclose Fe—Pt based sputtering targets and magnetic recording media, but they do not mention the lowering of the ordering temperature.
• Patent Document 1 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-313659 A
• Patent Document 2 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2013-77370 A
• Patent Document 3 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2002-123920 A
• Patent Document 4 WO 2014/196377 A1
• Patent Document 5 WO 2014/188916 A1
• Patent Document 6 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2008-59733 A
• Patent Document 7 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2012-214874 A
• Patent Document 8 Japanese Patent Application No. 2015-042309 (unpublished prior application)
• the technique described in Japanese Patent Application No. 2015-042309 is useful in that it is possible to obtain a sputtering target capable of lowering the heat treatment temperature for ordering the Fe—Pt magnetic phase.
• the technique described in the document causes a problem that particles tend to be generated during sputtering. It is desirable to minimize the particles in terms of quality stability of the sputtered film.
• An object of the present invention is to provide a sputtering target which can lower the heat treatment temperature for ordering the Fe—Pt magnetic phase, and which can suppress generation of particles during sputtering.
• a sputtering target obtained by sintering Ge powder as a raw material tends to generate nodules in Ge grain portions having lower conductivity than Fe—Pt alloy and cause the particles.
• the present inventors then have found that a sputtering target obtained by sintering alloy powder of Pt and Ge (hereinafter referred to as “Pt—Ge alloy powder”) or alloy powder of Pt, Ge and Fe (hereinafter referred to as “Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder”), rather than the Ge powder, as a raw material, can suppress generation of the nodules during sputtering and also generation of the particles.
• Analysis of the magnetic phase of such sputtering target by EPMA has revealed that an area ratio of the Ge-based alloy phase having a Ge concentration of 30% by mass or more has been extremely decreased. The present invention has been completed based on such findings.
• the present invention relates to a nonmagnetic material-dispersed sputtering target containing Fe, Pt and Ge, the sputtering target comprising at least one magnetic phase satisfying a composition represented by (Fe 1- ⁇ Pt ⁇ ) 1- ⁇ Ge ⁇ in an atomic ratio for Fe, Pt and Ge, in which ⁇ and ⁇ represent numbers meeting 0.35 ⁇ 0.55 and 0.05 ⁇ 0.2, respectively; wherein the magnetic phase satisfies a ratio (S Ge30mass% /S Ge ) of 0.5 or less, the ratio (S Ge30mass% /S Ge ) being a proportion of an average area ratio of Ge-based alloy phases containing Ge at a concentration of 30% by mass or more (S Ge30mass% ) to an area ratio of Ge (S Ge ) calculated from an entire composition of the sputtering target, in element mapping by EPMA of a polished surface obtained by polishing a cross section perpendicular to a sputtering surface of the sputter
• the nonmagnetic material comprises one or more selected from a group consisting of carbon, carbide, oxide and nitride, and wherein the nonmagnetic material accounts for a volume fraction of from 10 to 60 vol % based on a total volume of the sputtering target.
• the sputtering target comprises one or more third elements selected from a group consisting of Au, B, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Mo, Nb, Ni, Pd, Re, Rh, Ru, Sn, Ta, W, V and Zn, in an amount of 10 at. % or less as expressed by a ratio of a total number of atoms of the third element(s) to a total number of atoms of Fe, Ge and Pt.
• the sputtering target has an oxygen concentration of 400 ppm by mass or less.
• the present invention relates to a method for producing the sputtering target according to the present invention, comprising steps of:
• the Pt—Ge alloy powder and/or Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder has an average particle diameter of from 1 to 50 ⁇ m before the mixing step.
• the method comprises pressurizing the mixed powder at a pressure in a range of from 20 to 70 MPa during the sintering.
• the mixed powder obtained by the step of mixing the powders while pulverizing them has an average particle diameter of 20 ⁇ m or less.
• the present invention it is possible to provide a sputtering target which can lower the heat treatment temperature for ordering the Fe—Pt magnetic phase and can suppress generation of nodules and particles during sputtering.
• the use of the sputtering target according to the present invention can provide advantageous effects that a granular-structured magnetic thin film containing the Fe—Pt magnetic phase can be industrially produced at a lower cost and in a short period of time.
• the nonmagnetic material-dispersed sputtering target containing Fe, Pt and Ge has at least one magnetic phase containing Fe, Pt and Ge.
• the magnetic phase satisfies a composition represented by (Fe 1- ⁇ Pt ⁇ ) 1- ⁇ Ge ⁇ in an atomic ratio for Fe, Pt and Ge, in which ⁇ and ⁇ represent numbers meeting 0.35 ⁇ 0.55, and 0.05 ⁇ 0.2, respectively, in element mapping by EPMA of a polished surface obtained by polishing a cross section perpendicular to a sputtering surface of the sputtering target.
• the magnetic phase can contain a third element(s) which will be described below.
• the value of a of 0.35 or more provides an advantage that the magnetic phase takes the form of an ordered alloy phase.
• the value of ⁇ may preferably be 0.4 or more, and more preferably 0.45 or more. Further, the value of a of 0.55 or less also provides an advantage that the magnetic phase takes the form of an ordered alloy phase.
• the value of ⁇ may preferably be 0.53 or less, and more preferably 0.52 or less.
• the value of ⁇ of 0.05 or more can significantly develop the effect of lowering the ordering temperature.
• the value of ⁇ may preferably be 0.06 or more, and more preferably 0.07 or more.
• the value of ⁇ of 0.2 or less provides an advantage of capable of sufficiently obtaining magnetic characteristics as a magnetic thin film.
• the value of ⁇ may preferably be 0.15 or less, and more preferably 0.12 or less.
• the magnetic phase satisfies a ratio (S Ge30mass% /S Ge ) of 0.5 or less, the ratio being a proportion of an average area ratio of Ge-based alloy phases containing Ge at a concentration of 30% by mass or more (S Ge30mass %) to an area ratio of Ge (S Ge ) calculated from the entire composition of the sputtering target.
• the ratio of the Ge-based alloy phase (S Ge30mass% /S Ge )/ may preferably be 0.5 or less, and more preferably 0.3 or less, and still more preferably 0.2 or less, for example from 0 to 0.2.
• the ratio S Ge30mass% /S Ge in the magnetic phase is measured by the following method.
• a cross section perpendicular to the sputtering surface of the sputtering target is cut out, and the cross section is polished using coated abrasives with counts from P80 to P2000 in order, and finally buffed using aluminum oxide abrasive grains with a grain size of 0.3 ⁇ m to obtain a cross-section polished surface.
• the polished surface is subjected to element mapping using an EPMA (electron beam microanalyzer) under the following conditions, and the area ratio of the region having a Ge concentration of 30% by mass or more is examined.
• EPMA electron beam microanalyzer
• Observation conditions of the EPMA are as follows: an acceleration voltage of 15 kV, an irradiation current of 1 to 2 ⁇ 10 ⁇ 7 A; a plurality of element mapping images of 256 ⁇ 256 pixels (measurement time at 1 point of 1 msec) are acquired with an observation magnification of 2500 in different observation fields of view.
• element mapping monochrome or color images are obtained depending on X-ray detection intensity for specific elements.
• the X-ray intensity map is then converted to a mass concentration map using analysis function associated with the EPMA. The conversion is performed using a calibration curve (linear function) that correlates the X-ray detection intensity with the element concentration, which have been prepared by measuring standard samples of the respective elements.
• an average of the area ratios (S Ge30mass %) of the regions having the Ge concentration of 30% by mass or more is determined.
• the composition of the target is analyzed by an ICP-AES apparatus. From results of the composition analysis, the area ratio of Ge (S Ge ) is determined utilizing a mass ratio of each target component and a density of each component. In such a way, the ratio of S Ge30mass% (S Ge30mass% /S Ge ) is calculated.
• the sputtering target according to the present invention may contain one or more third elements selected from the group consisting of Au, B, Co, Cr, Cu, Mn, Mo, Nb, Ni, Pd, Re, Rh, Ru, Sn, Ta, W, V and Zn.
• these third elements provide the effect of lowering the heat treatment temperature for ordering the Fe—Pt magnetic phase, and are permissible to use them in combination with Ge.
• the sputtering target may contain the third element(s), in an amount of 10 at. % or less, or 5 at. % or less, or 1 at. % or less, as expressed by a ratio of the total number of atoms of the third element(s) to the total number of atoms of Fe, Ge and Pt.
• the sputtering target according to the present invention may contain one or more selected from the group consisting of carbon, carbide, oxide and nitride, as a nonmagnetic material.
• the nonmagnetic material can be dispersed as nonmagnetic material phases that are distinguishable from the magnetic phase in the sputtering target.
• the carbide include carbide of one or more elements selected from the group consisting of B, Ca, Nb, Si, Ta, Ti, W and Zr.
• oxides examples include oxide of one or more elements selected from the group consisting of Al, B, Ba, Be, Ca, Ce, Cr, Dy, Er, Eu, Ga, Gd, Ho, Li, Mg, Mn, Nb, Nd, Pr, Sc, Si, Sm, Sr, Ta, Tb, Ti, V, Y, Zn and Zr.
• nitride examples include nitride of one or more elements selected from the group consisting of Al, B, Ca, Nb, Si, Ta, Ti and Zr.
• the magnetic thin film produced by the sputtering target according to the present invention includes a structure in which the carbon, carbide, nitride and oxide insulate magnetic interaction between the magnetic phases, and is thus expected to have good magnetic properties.
• the amount of the nonmagnetic material incorporated is not particularly limited as long as it is within a range that is capable of maintaining properties required for magnetic recording media, but it may preferably be 10 vol. % or more, and more preferably 20 vol. % or more, and even more preferably 25 vol. % or more, based on the entre volume of the sputtering target, in terms of effectively exerting the effect of insulating the magnetic interaction.
• the amount of the nonmagnetic material incorporated may preferably be 60 vol. % or less, and more preferably 50 vol. % or less, and even more preferably 40 vol. % or less, in terms of ensuring productivity.
• the volume fraction of the nonmagnetic material can be determined by calculating a mass ratio from the atomic ratio and atomic weight of each element forming the target and using the mass ratio and the density of each element.
• the relative density of the sputtering target according to the present invention may preferably be 90% or more, and more preferably 93% or more, and still more preferably 95% or more. Increase of the density enhances the uniformity of the sputtered film and contributes to suppression of particles that will be generated during sputtering.
• the sputtering target with high density (sintered compact) can be obtained by combining conditions such as a decrease in the particle diameter of the raw material powder, sufficient mixing of the raw material powder, pressurizing conditions at a high temperature provided by hot pressing or hot isostatic pressing sintering during the production of the sintered body, and the like.
• the relative density of the sputtering target is calculated from the equation: (actual density/theoretical density) ⁇ 100(%), which is a ratio of the actual density measured by the Archimedes method in water to the theoretical density.
• ⁇ means that all the components of the target are summed.
• the sputtering target according to the present invention has an oxygen concentration of 400 ppm by mass or less.
• the low oxygen concentration provides an advantage that ordering tends to proceed.
• the oxygen concentration may preferably be 300 ppm by mass or less, and more preferably 250 ppm by mass or less, for example from 200 to 400 ppm by mass.
• the oxygen concentration is measured by an oxygen analyzer employing an inert gas fusion-infrared absorption method.
• the sputtering target according to the present invention can be produced by means of a powder sintering method, for example, by the following method.
• a powder sintering method for example, by the following method.
• Fe powder As metal powder, Fe powder, Pt—Ge alloy powder, Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder, Pt powder and optionally third element powder and the like are prepared. It is important for Ge to use the Pt—Ge alloy powder (alloy powder of Pt and Ge) or the Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder (alloy powder of Pt, Ge and Fe) as a raw material.
• the Pt—Ge alloy powder and the Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder may be used in combination.
• the resulting sputtering target can suppress generation of nodules during sputtering, and also suppress generation of particles.
• the sintering of the Ge powder alone as a raw material powder leads to a larger area ratio of the Ge-based alloy phase having the Ge concentration of 30% by mass or more in the magnetic phase forming the target, so that nodules are easily generated and an amount of the particles is also increased.
• the use of metal raw material powder having a small particle size leads to an increased amount of oxygen in the target due to the effect of the oxidation of the surface of the powder.
• the Pt—Ge alloy powder or the Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder may be prepared by pulverizing an ingot obtained by melting and casting, or may be prepared as atomized powder.
• Each of the Pt—Ge alloy powder and the Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder may preferably have an average particle diameter of 50 ⁇ m or less, and more preferably 30 ⁇ m or less, and even more preferably 20 ⁇ m or less, for the reason of eliminating a variation in the composition of the target.
• Each of the Pt—Ge alloy powder and the Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder may preferably have an average particle diameter of 1 ⁇ m or more, and more preferably 2 ⁇ m or more, and more preferably 4 ⁇ m or more, in terms of suppressing a composition change due to oxidation of these alloy powders.
• the powder of the metal other than Ge may preferably have an average particle diameter of 30 ⁇ m or less, and more preferably 20 ⁇ m or less, even more preferably 10 ⁇ m or less.
• the powder of the metal other than Ge may have preferably an average particle diameter of 1 ⁇ m or more, and more preferably 2 ⁇ m or more, and still more preferably 4 ⁇ m or more.
• Carbon powder, carbide powder, nitride powder, oxide powder, and the like may be prepared as powder of the nonmagnetic material.
• the carbon powder among the nonmagnetic materials it includes one having a crystal structure such as graphite and nanotube and an amorphous one represented by carbon black. Either of the carbon powders may be used.
• the average particle size may preferably be 30 ⁇ m or less, and more preferably 10 ⁇ m or less, and still more preferably 5 ⁇ m or less.
• the average particle diameter of the nonmagnetic material powder may preferably be 0.1 ⁇ m or more, and more preferably 1 ⁇ m or more, and still more preferably 2 ⁇ m or more.
• the average particle diameter of the metal powder and the nonmagnetic material means a particle diameter at a cumulative value of 50% (D50) on volume value basis in the particle size distribution determined by a laser diffraction/scattering method.
• the average particle diameter is measured by dispersing the powder in an ethanol solvent and using a particle size distribution measuring device, model LA-920 available from HORIBA, Ltd.
• a refractive index the value of metal cobalt is used.
• the raw material powder (metal powder and nonmagnetic material powder) is weighed so as to have a desired composition and mixed together and pulverized using a known method such as a ball mill.
• a known method such as a ball mill.
• the inert gas include Ar gas and N 2 gas.
• the powder may be preferably ground until the average particle diameter of the mixed powder is 20 ⁇ m or less, and more preferably to 10 ⁇ m or less, for example from 0.1 to 10 ⁇ m, in order to achieve a uniform structure.
• the mixed powder thus obtained is molded and sintered by a hot pressing method in a vacuum atmosphere or an inert gas atmosphere.
• various pressure sintering methods such as a plasma discharge sintering method may be used.
• a hot isostatic pressing and sintering method HIP is effective for improving the density of the sintered compact, and the hot pressing method and the hot isostatic pressing and sintering method may be preferably carried out in this order, in terms of improving the density of the sintered compact.
• the retention temperature during the sintering depends on the composition of the magnetic phase to avoid melting of metal powder. It may be preferably less than the melting point(s) of the Pt—Ge alloy and/or the Pt—Fe—Ge alloy, more preferably at least 20° C. lower than the melting point(s), and even more preferably at least 50° C. lower than the melting point.
• the retention temperature may preferably be 1070° C. or lower, and more preferably 950° C. or lower, and even more preferably 850° C. or lower.
• the retention temperature during the sintering may preferably be 650° C. or higher, and more preferably 700° C. or higher, and even more preferably 750° C. or higher, in order to avoid a decrease in the density of the sintered compact.
• the pressing pressure during the sintering may preferably be 20 MPa or more, and more preferably 25 MPa or more, and still more preferably 30 MPa or more, in order to facilitate the sintering.
• the pressing pressure during the sintering may preferably be 70 MPa or less, and more preferably 50 MPa or less, and still more preferably 40 MPa or less, in view of the strength of the dies.
• the duration of time of the sintering may preferably be 0.3 hours or more, and more preferably 0.5 hours or more, and still more preferably 1.0 hours or more, in order to improve the density of the sintered compact.
• the duration of time of the sintering may preferably be 3.0 hours or less, and more preferably 2.0 hours or less, and still more preferably 1.5 hours or less, in order to prevent coarsening of crystal grains.
• the resulting sintered compact may be shaped into a desired shape using a lathe or the like to provide the sputtering target according to the present invention.
• the shape of the target includes, but not particularly limited to, a flat plate shape (including a disk shape and a rectangular plate shape) and a cylindrical shape, for example.
• the sputtering target according to the present invention is particularly useful as a sputtering target used for forming a granular structure magnetic thin film.
• the average particle diameter (D50) of the raw material powder was measured by the method as described above using an LA-920 apparatus available from HORIBA, Ltd.
• the Pt—Ge alloy powder was obtained by pulverizing an ingot obtained by dissolving and casting Pt and Ge at an atomic ratio of 1:1 and sieving it through a sieve having a mesh opening size of 90 ⁇ m.
• the Pt—Ge alloy powder was charged into a ball mill pot having a capacity of 10 liters together with SUS balls as a grinding medium, and rotated in an Ar atmosphere for 8 hours to mix and pulverize them.
• the average particle diameter (D50) of the Pt—Ge alloy powder after pulverizing was determined by the laser diffraction/scattering method. As a result, the average particle diameter was about 20 ⁇ m for any of the test examples.
• the Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder was obtained by the atomizing method so as to have a composition with an atomic ratio of Pt, Ge and Fe being 1:1:0.2.
• the atomized Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder was charged into a ball mill pot having a capacity of 10 liters together with SUS balls as a grinding medium, and rotated in an Ar atmosphere for 8 hours to mix and pulverize them.
• the average particle diameter (D50) of the Pt—Ge—Fe alloy powder after pulverizing was determined by the laser diffraction/scattering method. As a result, the average particle diameter was about 20 ⁇ m for any of the test examples.
• the weighed raw material powder was charged into a ball mill pot having a capacity of 10 liters together with SUS balls as a grinding medium and rotated for 4 hours in an Ar atmosphere to mix and pulverize them.
• the average particle diameter (D50) of the mixed powder after pulverizing was determined by the laser diffraction/scattering method. As a result, it was from about 1 to 5 ⁇ m for any of the test examples.
• the powder taken out of the pot was filled into a carbon mold, and molded and sintered using a hot pressing machine. The hot pressing was carried out in a vacuum atmosphere at a heating temperature of 300° C./hours and at a retention temperature of 750° C.
• the sintered body was subjected to natural cooling within the chamber as it was.
• the sintered compact taken out of the hot pressing mold was then subjected to hot isostatic pressing and sintering (HIP).
• the hot isostatic pressing and sintering was carried out at a heating temperature of 300° C./hours and at a retention temperature of 750° C. for a retention time of 2 hours under a gas pressure of an Ar gas which was gradually increased from the start of the heating and which was at 150 MPa during the retention at 750° C.
• each sintered compact was cut into a shape having a diameter of 180.0 mm and a thickness of 5.0 mm to provide a disk-shaped sputtering target.
• a cross section perpendicular to the sputtering surface of the target according to each test example obtained by the above producing procedures was cut out by a fine cutter and polished by the above-mentioned polishing method to obtain a cross-section polished surface.
• the magnetic phases of the cross-section polished surface was subjected to element mapping using an EPMA (apparatus name: JXA-8500F, available from JEOL Ltd.) under the following conditions to examine an area ratio of the region having a Ge concentration of 30% by mass or more.
• the observation conditions for the EPMA were as follows: an acceleration voltage of 15 kV, and an irradiation current of 1 ⁇ 10 ⁇ 7 to 2 ⁇ 10 ⁇ 7 A; ten element mapping images with 256 ⁇ 256 pixels (measurement time at one point of 1 msec) were acquired with an observation magnification of 2500 in different observation fields of view.
• the element mapping monochrome or color images corresponding to X-ray detection intensity of specific elements are obtained. Therefore, the X-ray intensity map was converted to a mass concentration map by using an analysis function of a surface analysis software (version 1.42), which was a basic software attached to the EPMA.
• the conversion was carried out by using a calibration curve (linear function) that correlated the X-ray detection intensity with the element concentration prepared by measuring a standard pure sample of each element. Then, using the converted mass concentration map, the area ratio S Ge30mass% (%) of the region having the Ge concentration of 30% by mass or more was determined for each field of view, and an average of 10 fields of view was calculated. Then, a ratio (S Ge30mass% /S Ge ) of the average ratio (S Ge30mass% ) to the area ratio of Ge (S Ge ) obtained from results of the composition analysis of the target as described below was calculated.
• Table 1 shows the ratio (S Ge30mass% /S Ge ) of the average S Ge30mass% to the S Ge thus determined.
• the oxygen concentration was measured by an oxygen analyzer (apparatus name TC 600) available from LECO CORPORATION, which adopted the inert gas fusion-infrared absorption method. The results are shown in Table 1.
• the target according to each test example obtained by the above producing procedures was cut using the lathe to prepare cutting chips, which were subjected to composition analysis by an ICP-AES apparatus (available from Hitachi High-Tech Science Corporation (originally SII Corporation), apparatus name: SPS 3100 HV), confirming that the composition of each target was substantially the same as the weighed composition.
• ICP-AES apparatus available from Hitachi High-Tech Science Corporation (originally SII Corporation), apparatus name: SPS 3100 HV
• the metal composition analysis was carried out by drawing a calibration curve by the internal standard method.
• the relative density was calculated from the actual density measured by the Archimedes method in water and the theoretical density for the target according to each test example obtained by the above producing procedures. The results are shown in Table 1.
• the sputtering target according to each test example obtained by the above producing procedures was attached to a magnetron sputtering apparatus (C-3010 sputtering system available from CANON ANELVA CORPORATION), and sputtering was then carried out.
• the sputtering conditions were as follows: supplied power of 1 kW and an Ar gas pressure of 1.7 Pa; a film was formed on a silicon substrate for 20 seconds.
• the number of particles (particle diameter of from 0.25 to 3 ⁇ m) adhering to the substrate was measured using a particle counter (apparatus name: Surfscan 6420 available from KLA-Tencor Corporation). The results are shown in Table 1.
• the sputtering surface of the sputtering target after film formation was observed by SEM, indicating that substantially no nodule was observed for Examples 1 to 23, but the presence of nodules was observed for Comparative Example 1.
• the thin film on the substrate was heated at 400° C. for 1 hour in a high vacuum furnace and then analyzed by XRD (X-ray diffraction method). As a result, the peak of the Fe—P ordered phase was confirmed for the thin film according to any of the test examples. Analysis conditions of the X-ray diffraction method were as follows:
• Analyzer a fully automated horizontal multi-purpose X-ray diffractometer Smart Lab available from Rigaku Corporation; Tube: Cu (measured by CuK ⁇ );
• Optical System a focusing-type diffraction optical system
• Attenuator OPEN
• the resulting XRD profile was analyzed using an integrated powder X-ray analysis software PDXL available from Rigaku Corporation.
• the resulting measurement data were subjected to BG removal, K ⁇ 2 removal and peak search in automatic mode to extract diffraction peaks.
• the presence or absence of a peak in a range of ⁇ 0.5° of the diffraction peak angle from each of the (001) plane and the (110) plane was examined.
• the FePt film was determined to be ordered.

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