Uniformity improvement in dc magnetron sputtering deposition on a large area substrate

Single-substrate transfer type sputtering systems have been used for deposition of electrode films in liquid crystal display (LCD) production process. in deposition on a large area substrate such as 550 mm x 650 mm thickness distribution has a feature of diagonal non-uniformity The differences of electron flow distances from a target to anodes are remarkable in a larger processing system, therefore plasma density in a race track discharge has non-uniformity. Electron suppressers consisting of electrically floating walls ave investigated in order to control local electron flow distances. On a 550 mm x 650 mm substrate, a film thickness uniformity is improved from +/-7.0% to +/-4.4% by use of electron suppressers. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.