Compact substrate heater for use in an oxidizing atmosphere

Abstract

A compact heater, designed for the deposition of thin films at high temperatures in an oxidizing atmosphere or in vacuum, is described. The heater, including an oxygen-resistant case and the attached substrate, can be loaded into a vacuum deposition chamber through a small-diameter load-lock port, and will operate in 0-1 atm of oxygen at temperatures up to at least 800°C. Heat is generated resistively, and the substrates are heated directly by thermal conduction. The heater was built specifically to heat substrates during the growth of high-temperature superconducting thin films.