Ion beam processing for thin film deposition is rapidly overtaking some of the more conventional plasma-based thin film processing techniques. This is due to strong improvements in the types and reliabilities of the sources available as well as a growing understanding of the advantages and capabilities of using ion beams.An ion beam process can be differentiated from a plasma-based process in that the plasma in an ion beam is generated away from the sample and a beam of ions is directed at the sample. In a plasma-based process, the sample is usually immersed in the plasma. This highlights the fundamental advantage of ion beam processing—control of the flux and energy of the ions incident on either a sample or a target (for sputter deposition). It is this control which is missing in plasma-based processing, where the ion flux (current), ion energy, chamber pressure, and gas species are all hopelessly intertwined. In addition, certain aspects of the ion bombardment—angle of incidence, complications of gas scattering, etc. —are essentially fixed in plasma-based processing, leaving no room to vary parameters, and in conjunction, film properties.A wealth of different types of ion sources cover a broad range of beam currents and energies. At the high energy end (0.1 – 20 MeV) are the implantation sources, typically used for doping semiconductors and treating surfaces (hardening, for example) and for various types of nuclear chemical analysis. These sources, however, tend to be very low current (μA). At slightly lower energies (tens of kilo-electron volts), but significantly higher currents (50 A), are the ion sources used for heating fusion plasmas.
Ion-beam-assisted thin film deposition.
