Parallel Unstructured Dynamic Grid Direct Monte Carlo Simulation of Molecular Gas Dynamics and Its Applications

Abstract

A new parallel dynamic unstructured grid DSMC method is presented in this paper. The code developed has been applied to the simulation of thin film deposition over microstructures. Surface deformation in such cases poses a challenge for accurate evaluation of gas flow due to the fact that the deposited film thickness is comparable to the feature size. In this study a method is developed to move the mesh at run time. Since in parallel simulation each partition moves independently of the others, a parallel version of moving mesh is proposed to synchronize the displacement of the neighboring partitions, so that there is a smooth transition from one partition to another. An efficient tool for tracking particles during simulation is also presented. Furthermore, the influence of parameters, such as sticking coefficient and aspect ratio on step coverage for a 1eμm wide trench by sputter deposition was studied. The results showed that the step coverage deteriorated with increasing sticking coefficient and aspect ratio.