In situ evaluation of plane plasma

Low-pressure plane plasma discharge is a novel technique for thin film growth. It makes possible fine control of most of the sputtering parameters, as well as supporting a high growth rate. A low-pressure plane argon plasma was obtained in a triode sputtering system. The in situ non-static conditions of the plane plasma behaviour during sputtering were investigated. The electron temperature and ion concentration of the plane plasma were measured using a Langmuir probe technique. A further study was made of the reciprocal arrangement of the sputtering target and the reference ring electrode, which affects the process by causing re-sputtering or dry etching of the growing layers. All of the sputtering experiments were done using pure Ag targets. The sheet resistivity of the deposited silver films was measured using a four-point probe method.