Specific Process Knowledge/Thin film deposition/Deposition of Silver

From LabAdviser

Feedback to this page: click here


Deposition of Silver

Silver can be deposited by e-beam evaporation, by sputtering and by thermal evaporation. In the chart below you can compare the different methods on the different deposition equipment.


Sputter deposition of Silver

Thermal deposition of Silver

Comparison of deposition equipment for silver

E-beam evaporation (Temescal) Thermal evaporation (Thermal Evaporator) Thermal evaporation (Wordentec) E-beam evaporation (Physimeca) Sputter deposition (Wordentec) Sputter deposition (Lesker) Sputter deposition (Cluster-based sputter system)
General description E-beam deposition of Ag Thermal deposition of Ag Thermal deposition of Ag E-beam deposition of Ag Sputter deposition of Ag Sputter deposition of Ag Sputter deposition of Ag
Pre-clean Ar ion beam bombardment none RF Ar clean none RF Ar clean RF Ar clean RF Ar clean
Layer thickness 10Å to 1µm* 10Å to 0.5µm ** 10Å to 0.5µm **(0.5µm not on all wafers) 10Å to 2000Å 10Å to about 3000Å 10Å to about 2000Å 10Å to ?
Deposition rate 1 to 10Å/s 5Å/s 1 to 10Å/s 1 to 10Å/s Depending on process parameters (also written in the logbook). Dependent on process parameters. Dependent on process parameters.
Batch size
  • Up to 4x6" wafers or
  • Up to 3x8" wafers *** or
  • smaller pieces
  • Up to 1x8" wafers
  • smaller pieces

very bad uniformity above 4" wafers

  • 6x6" wafers or
  • 6x4" wafers or
  • 24x2" wafers
  • 4x6" wafers or
  • 12x4" wafers or
  • 12x2" wafers
  • 6x6" wafers or
  • 6x4" wafers or
  • 24x2" wafers
  • 1x6" wafers or
  • 1x4" wafers or
  • smaller pieces
  • up to 10x6" wafers or
  • up to 10x4" wafers or
  • many smaller pieces
Allowed materials
  • Silicon
  • Silicon oxide
  • Silicon (oxy)nitride
  • Photoresist
  • PMMA
  • Mylar
  • SU-8
  • Metals
  • Silicon
  • Silicon oxide
  • Silicon (oxy)nitride
  • Photoresist
  • PMMA
  • Mylar
  • SU-8
  • Metals
  • Silicon
  • Silicon oxide
  • Silicon (oxy)nitride
  • Photoresist
  • PMMA
  • Mylar
  • SU-8
  • Metals
  • III-V materials
  • Silicon wafers
  • Quartz wafers
  • Pyrex wafers
  • Silicon
  • Silicon oxide
  • Silicon (oxy)nitride
  • Photoresist
  • PMMA
  • Mylar
  • SU-8
  • Metals
  • Silicon
  • Silicon oxide
  • Silicon (oxy)nitride
  • Photoresist
  • PMMA
  • Mylar
  • SU-8
  • Metals
  • Almost any as long as it does not outgas if you plan to use substrate heating. See cross-contamination sheets in Labmanager.
Comment Pumpdown approx 20 min. Possible to tilt the wafer. Pumpdown approx 15 min. Only very thin layers. Pumpdown approx 1 hour. Load and transfer approx. 12 minutes

* For thicknesses above 600 nm please get permission from ThinFilm group by writing to metal@danchip.dtu.dk

** For thicknesses above 200 nm please get permission from ThinFilm group by writing to metal@danchip.dtu.dk

*** Please ask responsible staff for 8" wafer holder