Thin Film Deposition Systems
These two techniques are used for the deposition of thin metallic and insulating layers:
Sputtering
A low pressure argon-plasma is used to erode a target by sputtering. The sputtered material is deposited onto a sample located opposite to the target. Sputtering can be used to produce thin films of metals and alloys (e.g. Niobium, Gold-Palladium) and of insulators (e.g. Quartz) .
Evaporation
By strong heating in vacuum many materials can be evaporated. This technique is well suited for metals with low melting temperature (e.g. Aluminium, Gold). The high temperatures for the evaporation are created by resistively heated stripes of refractory metals, called boats, or by high power electron beams.
