The radio frequency hollow cathode plasma jet arc for the film deposition

Abstract

The radio frequency hollow cathode plasma jet (RPJ or RHCPJ) arc discharge is studied for an activated reactive deposition of TiN films. The presence of low content of nitrogen in argon enables reaching the arc regime at lower powers than in pure argon. The transition into the distributed arc after admission of low content of nitrogen results in an extreme enhancement of TiN deposition rate (20–30× higher than for Ti) and at the same time in an effective incorporation of nitrogen into the film. The spontaneously repeated transitions between the hollow cathode discharge and RHCPJ arc at particular parameters are studied. The time development and the character of these transitions confirm the substantial role of metastable argon atoms in the discharge. The comparison of several cathode materials is presented. The reactive deposition of TiN films at low nitrogen pressure without argon is examined.