Diagnostics of Magnetron Sputtering Discharges by Resonant Absorption Spectroscopy

Abstract

The determination of the absolute number density of species in gaseous discharge is one of the most important plasma diagnostics tasks. This information is especially demanded in the case of low-temperature sputtering discharges since the time- and space-resolved behavior of the sputtered particles in the ground state determines the plasma kinetics and plasma chemistry in this case. Historically, magnetron sputtering is often implied when talking about sputtering discharges due to the popularity and the numerous advantages this technique provides for coating applications. The determination of the absolute density of various atomic and molecular species in magnetron sputtering discharges along with its time and space evolution may be important from several points of view, since it may help to estimate the total flux of particles to a virtual surface in the plasma reactor, to compare the throughputs of two different sputtering systems, to use the absolute particle concentrations as an input data for discharge modeling, etc. This chapter is intended to provide an overview on the advantages and main principles of resonant absorption spectroscopy technique as a reliable tool for in situ diagnostics of the particle density, as well as on the recent progress in characterization of magnetron sputtering discharges using this technique, when the role of reference source is played by another low-temperature discharge. Both continuous and pulsed magnetron sputtering discharges are overviewed. Along with the introduction covering the main principles of magnetron sputtering, the description of the basics of resonant absorption technique, and the selected results related to the particle density determination in direct current and high-power pulsed magnetron sputtering discharges are given, covering both space- and time-resolved density evolutions.