A-Si/SiO2 nanolaminates for tuning the complex refractive index and band gap in optical interference coatings.

A-S i/S i O 2 nanolaminates are deposited by magnetron sputtering and show a decreasing absorption when the a-Si single-layer thickness is reduced from 2.4n m to 0.7n m. Moreover, an increase of the Tauc band gap by 0.18e V is measured. Experimental Tauc band gaps are compared to calculated effective band gaps, utilizing a numerical Schrödinger solver. Further, it is demonstrated that the refractive index can be controlled by adjusting the a-Si and S i O 2 single-layer thicknesses in the nanolaminates. The nanolaminates are optically characterized by spectroscopic ellipsometry, transmittance, and reflectance measurements. Additionally, TEM images reveal uniform, well-separated layers, and EDX measurements show the silicon and oxygen distribution in the nanolaminates.

Improving optical thickness monitoring by including systematic and process-influenced transmittance deviations.

During optical monitoring using broadband transmittance measurement, the accuracy depends on how both the substrate and the optical path are aligned. We present a correction procedure to improve the accuracy of the monitoring, even if the substrate has features such as absorption or if there is misalignment of the optical path. The substrate in this case can either be a test glass or a product. The algorithm is proven by experimental coatings which were produced with and without the correction. Additionally, the optical monitoring system was also used to perform an in situ quality check. The system allows a detailed spectral analysis of all substrates with a high position resolution. Both plasma and the temperature effects on the central wavelength of a filter are identified. This knowledge enables the optimization of the following runs.

Properties of reactive sputtered alumina-silica mixtures.

Standard antireflective coatings applied to hard substrates like sapphire suffer from poor abrasion resistance. Silica is used as low refractive index layer in many multilayer systems although it has a lower hardness than the substrate. In this work an attempt was made to enhance the hardness by the addition of alumina. Magnetron sputtering was used in two different ways because it delivers dense coatings with high durability. Nanoindention hardness measurements of mixed alumina-silica films are presented in comparison to haze measurements after a sand trickling test. The hardness of silica is unexpectedly lowered by the addition of small amounts of alumina. Two different stacks were coated in which the low refractive index layers were sputtered as pure material and material mixtures. The thickness loss results after an oscillation abrasion test are presented.

Origin of particles during reactive sputtering of oxides using planar and cylindrical magnetrons.

Particles generated during reactive magnetron sputtering cause defects in optical thin films, which may lead to losses in optical performance, pinholes, loss of adhesion, decreased laser-induced damage thresholds and many more negative effects. Therefore, it is important to reduce the particle contamination during the manufacturing process. In the present paper, the origin of particles during the deposition of various oxide films by midfrequency pulsed reactive magnetron sputtering was investigated. Several steps have been undertaken to decrease the particle contamination during the complete substrate handling procedure. It was found that conditioning of the vacuum chamber can help to decrease the defect level significantly. This level remains low for several hours of sputtering and increases after 100 hours of process time. Particle densities of SiO(2) films deposited with cylindrical and planar dual magnetrons at different process parameters as well as different positions underneath the target were compared. It was observed that the process power influences the particle density significantly in case of planar targets while cylindrical targets have no such strong dependence. In addition, the particle contamination caused by different cylindrical target materials was analyzed. No major differences in particle contamination of different cylindrical target types and materials were found.

Optical properties of silicon titanium oxide mixtures prepared by metallic mode reactive sputtering.

In this paper different SiO(2)-TiO(2) mixtures are prepared by metallic mode reactive sputtering. The samples were sputtered from cylindrical targets in a sputter-up configuration using an additional plasma source for oxidization. The different ratios of SiO(2) and TiO(2) in the mixtures are prepared by a target sputtering power variation. Optical film properties of the mixtures such as refractive index, which is determined by ellipsometric measurements, and optical bandgap, which is measured by photometric (transmission) measurements, are investigated. The thin-film structure is investigated by x-ray diffraction analysis and the stress of the films is presented. It is shown that the metallic mode reactive sputtering in the present configuration is applicable to continuously tune optical and mechanical properties. Finally the sputtered mixed materials are compared with other optical standard materials such as Nb(2)O(5), Ta(2)O(5), HfO(2), and Al(2)O(3).

In situ thickness determination of multilayered structures using single wavelength ellipsometry and reverse engineering.

An in situ monitoring setup and process control loop were developed and integrated into a magnetron sputtering coater equipped with a Sentech SE 401 single wavelength ellipsometer, including the engineering of software for in situ process control to enhance production accuracy. By using that software, the system allows direct monitoring of the layer thickness on a moving substrate. It is shown that it is possible to determine the complex index of refraction from the distribution of measurements depending on the layer thickness. A strategy has been developed for in situ reverse thickness engineering of the top layers to compensate measurement errors.

Mixed oxide coatings for optics.

Material mixtures offer new possibilities for synthesizing coating materials with tailored optical and mechanical properties. We present experimental results on mixtures of HfO2, ZrO2, and Al2O3, pursuing applications in UV coating technology, while the mixtures are prepared by magnetron sputtering, ion beam sputtering, plasma ion-assisted deposition (PIAD), and electron beam evaporation without assistance. The properties investigated include the refractive index, optical gap, thermal shift, and mechanical stress. The first high reflectors for UV applications have been deposited by PIAD.

Design and manufacture of spectrally selective reflecting coatings for the use with laser display projection screens.

To provide screens for laser projection that improve contrast, a spectrally selective reflecting filter was designed by using genetic algorithms to overcome the problem of unknown starting values. Colormetrics rather than fixed targets were used for evaluation. Various selective filters were deposited upon glass as well as upon solid and flexible plastic substrates by reactive mid-frequency magnetron sputtering. For process control, in situ spectroscopic ellipsometry was applied.