High-vacuum chamber for thin-film synthesis

The Helsinki Accelerator Laboratory (HAL) at the Department of Physics of the University of Helsinki (UH) is going to acquire a multi-source high vacuum (HV) chamber for thin-film deposition using magnetron sputtering. The magnetron sources will be capable of operating in direct-current magnetron sputtering (DCMS), radio-frequency magnetron sputtering (RFMS), and high-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HiPIMS) modes. Key feature of the deposition chamber will be the ability to accommodate and deposited homogeneously on substrates with diameter up to 8 inches (203.2 mm). A quick access port for loading and unloading substrates with a diameter up to 8 inches (203.2 nm) to the deposition chamber will be available. Moreover, the chamber design will allow provisionally for future functional expansion including installing a thermal evaporator for thin film deposition and a load-lock chamber for transferring samples to the deposition chamber without vacuum cycle interruption. RFMS and HiPIM power supplies, as well as instrumentation for thin film thermal evaporation, and load-lock chamber are not part of this tender. HAL is a leading materials science environment in Finland. The current research at HAL focuses on materials of importance for nanotechnology, micro- and optoelectronics, fusion technology, and particle detectors. Material properties are studied by applying various ion beam-based techniques, as well as by computational means. With regards to thin-film synthesis, the HAL laboratory installations presently feature two ultra-high vacuum magnetron sputtering systems used by faculty members, post-doctoral researchers, Ph.D. students, M.Sc. students, and B.Sc. students for fundamental and applied research in the core areas of interest for HAL With the deposition system described herein, HAL seeks to expand its capabilities with regards to synthesis of thin-film materials via magnetron sputtering on substrate sizes and conditions commensurate with industrial processes. The deposition system will primarily be a research and development tool to synthesize elemental and multicomponent thin films, including metals and multi-component alloys thereof, metallic glasses, semiconductors, insulators, magnetic materials, metal nitrides, metal oxides, and metal carbides. Moreover, the deposition system will provide full flexibility for tuning temporal profile of the deposition flux, deposition flux energy, gas flow, substrate temperature, substrate rotation, and deposition geometry. These features will enable to control growth kinetics on large scale wafers and other substrates. Also, ability to perform in situ film characterization by means of e.g., spectroscopic ellipsometry and stress analysis, as well as possibility for in situ plasma analysis is an option. The system will be used by faculty members, senior researchers, post-doctoral researchers, PhD students, M.Sc. students, and B.Sc. students, as well as other researchers who have a professional connection HAL and its ongoing research activities. A detailed technical specification, stating the minimum requirements for the deposition system to fulfill its scope is given in Appendix 2. Manufacturers are, however, encouraged to suggest additional features to better fulfill the scope of this tender.