Reactive RF/DC sputter deposition tool for transparent electrodes, insulators and contacts

• Subject Area: Materials Science
• Term: Funded in 2021
• Project identifier: Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) - Project number 466647670

Sputtered films and heterostructures are a fundamental requirement for advanced materials research and to develop novel functional (opto-)electronic devices and sensors.This reactive magnetron sputter tool for processing up to 6” wafer substrates is one major instrument of the central nanofabrication facility at the University of Siegen. This core facility with its clean room systematically provides access to all researchers of the School of Science and Technology and beyond. The state of North Rhine-Westphalia together with the university is integrating this into a new nanoscience center with a modern 600m2 ISO 4 clean room. The strategy is to merge the university’s nanofabrication infrastructure for materials and device development at the Center for Sensor Systems, the Center for Micro- and Nanochemistry and Engineering and the Multidisciplinary Center for Innovative Materials under the clear sharing methodology of the DFG-funded Micro- and Nanoanalytics Core Facility MNaF. This strategy anticipates a sustainable and efficient use of this deposition tool and all other nanotechnological instruments, at the best scientific level, with specialized support personnel, a professional optimization of the involved processes, and a systematic user access organization/training. The close vicinity of the deposition tool to other fabrication instrumentation as well as to the nanoanalytical laboratories allows the efficient development of highly topical research on environmentally sensitive or even reactive materials, e.g., phase-change or energy materials. Therefore, the whole process chain from material’s synthesis to its final device application or characterization will be possible under cryogenic and/or high-vacuum conditions with adequate transport mechanisms between individual instruments.This sputtering tool will dominantly be utilized to deposit stoichiometric dielectric thin films, transparent electrodes and phase-change materials. Such functional thin films are the basis for a broad range of research activities on optical and biological sensors, perovskite solar cells and nanoelectronic devices based on 2D materials. Moreover, it will be used to deposit structured electrodes, which enable research on materials with novel physical and chemical properties. Research topics are spin orbitronics, laser-induced plasmas, quantum emitters as well as ion conduction. Sputtered thin films will also utilized to construct tailored MEMS-based chips for in situ experiments at the MNaF.The sputter tool will be equipped with four RF/DC sputter sources, a plasma source for substrate cleaning as well as the reactive deposition of stoichiometric thin films and multilayers. Moreover, it comes with a flexible substrate holder and heating. To facilitate the research on reactive specimens, the instrument will additionally be equipped with a dedicated vacuum load lock. The mandatory transfer shuttle is will be shared with all other equipment of this proposal bundle.

• DFG Programme: Major Research Instrumentation
• Major Instrumentation: Reaktive RF/DC–Sputteranlage für transparente Elektroden, Isolatoren und Kontakte
• Instrumentation Group: 8330 Vakuumbedampfungsanlagen und -präparieranlagen für Elektronenmikroskopie
• Applicant Institution: Universität Siegen
• Leader: Professor Dr. Benjamin Butz