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ATC B-SERIES BATCH COATING SYSTEMS

General Information

AJA International ATC-B Series Batch Coating Systems are custom engineered sputtering and evaporation systems built to handle smaller production runs of multiple substrates. Cylindrical or box style chambers are employed depending on the specific requirement. For extended process times, horizontal magnetron sputtering is most common since material build-up has no chance to fall onto the substrate or into the magnetron sputter source thereby aborting the process due to shorting.

To optimize these systems for a given PVD process, AJA engineers can draw on a long history of standard and custom sputter source and substrate holder designs to satisfy the specific needs of the application. For example, the ATC-B 3400-H horizontal cylinder has special magnetron sputter sources which are designed to reliably run a 50,000 layer processes that can take up to 4 days to complete.

TYPICAL Batch coating system configurations

Typical Box Chamber Configurations

ATC-H-2020
For coating substrates up to 300mm in diameter, this system accommodates up to (4) 4” sputtering sources simultaneously using (2) sources at different angles to uniformly coat 300mm Ø
area. This tool also includes a broad beam End Hall ion source for substrate pre-clean and sample preparation.

ATC-2030-E
A box coater with multi pocket rotary e-beam source and dual thermal sources. This model was fitted with a (4) x 4" wafer flat planetary substrate holder.

ATC-B-2436
For CD mastering, this system handles one rotating substrate at a time and employs a
single AJA Nautilus Series Rotating magnetron
for optimum uniformity.

ATC-B-2848
Small in-line coater designed to utilize AJA STXL rectangular magnetrons to coat multiple substrates on a moving pallet. The pictured system was used to make large quantities of 1mm x 5xmm, temperature sensitive Platinum on ceramic sensors for use in thermostats.

Typical Cylindrical Chamber Configurations

ATC-B-3400-H
Extended process side sputtering batch coater designed for a proprietary application requiring
40-50 thousand layers per run. Custom AJA STXL-EO (extended operation) magnetrons were designed to prevent aborted processing due to source shorting. This system will process (8) 6" substrates or hundreds of smaller substrates per batch.

ATC-B-3400
Mask making tool processes (6) 8" wafers per batch with up to (3) materials deposited from AJA TR5313 triangular magnetrons for optimum uniformity. The system also includes a 7 substrate cassette in the load-lock to boost throughput up to (60) 8" substrates (or thousands of small substrates) per 8 hour period.

ATC 2200-H Horizontal Sputter Coater
Capable of coating concave, 25 mm thick, X-ray mirror substrates up to 300 mm in diameter with +/- 2% uniformity utilizing (4) in-situ tilt sputter guns. The substrate carrier can also be replaced by planetary tooling for a batch of 3D objects or small wafers or coupons.

ATC 2200-UHV-DMD
The bake jacketed UHV system above is configured to coat up to (4) 4" diameter, 1" thick Ge substrates per batch from both sides by utilizing an in-situ substrate pallet flipping mechanism.

Substrate Holder
RF biasable batch substrate holder with in-situ flipping capability

Load-Lock
with heavy duty magnetic transfer system for 6 kg substrate pallet

SPUTTERING SOURCES

AJA has designed and delivered over 100 different types of magnetron sputter sources since 1991. AJA has the capability to precisely match the sputter source to the requirement with proven technology. The STXL Series (linear, 50 mm to 150 mm wide and up to 1 meter long), the STX Series (5" to 12" diameter), the Nautilus Series Rotating Magnetrons (8", 10" and 12" diameter), the TR Series Triangular Magnetrons and the CTM Series Hollow Cathode Cylindrical Magnetrons (2" to 12" ID) are all AJA designs with proven track records which can be employed to get the job done as efficiently and as reliably as possible.

Most AJA production magnetron sputter sources feature the unique modular magnet array allowing the sources to be configured for balanced, unbalanced, magnetic material and facing target sputtering.

AJA STXL Magnetron
AJA's STXL Series Magnetrons feature direct-cooled copper backing plates for maximum deposition rate and easily accessible magnet arrays. This allows the end user to choose between optimum uniformity or optimum target utilization of up to 60-70%. The sources feature integral gas injection and high power RF or DC operation. Rectangular versions in 75, 100, 125 and 150 mm widths are offered up to 1 meter long. Both internal mount (via flex hose or solid tube) and external flange mount designs are available.

AJA CT1210
Cylindrical target magnetron used for 3D sputtering where substrates are immersed into the target / cathode.

AJA TR5313
Triangular magnetrons specialty sources designed to optimize deposition uniformity onto a circle of substrates up to 8" Ø.

A340-XP UHV 4" Sputter Source Array
Sources feature in-situ tilting and are ideal for uniform coatings on multi-substrate pallets up to 300 mm Ø.

Custom AJA STXL-EO (extended operation) Tunable magnetrons with water cooled isolation designed to prevent aborted processing due to source shorting.

AJA NT-80
Configurable magnet array allows the user to optimize target utilization, uniformity, or even "intentional non-uniformity". This source has also been used with segmented, multi-material targets depositing onto spinning substrates to perform direct, variable co-depositions from a single magnetron as the power supply output is synchronized to change power for each segment being sputtered.

SUBSTRATE HOLDERS - HEATING / COOLING

AJA has designed over 130 different types of customized substrate holders and fixturing for custom pilot production batch coating systems since 1991.

These include rotating, indexing, linear and planetary motion, plus heating, cooling and RF/DC biasing. Different aspects of these proven designs can be combined to create a new, yet highly reliable custom substrate holder. Reliable substrate holder design is one of the most crucial parts of a custom batch coater and manufacturer experience can easily account for the difference between a maintenance intensive machine and the high throughput machine everyone desires.

Rotary Substrate Platen
Accommodates up to (9) 6" wafers, 6 (8") wafers
or a large number of smaller substrates. This continuously rotating assembly can be configured with RF/DC bias, backside heating and a "quick exchange" substrate pallet.

Flat Planetary
Features (4) manually removable carriers for convenient, bench-top substrate mounting or cleaning. The assembly accommodates (4) 100 mm wafers or numerous smaller substrates. Larger versions holding up to four 300 mm Ø wafers are also available.

Rotary Substrate holder
Accommodates up to (8) 2.0”x 1.5" substrates capable of continuous rotation and position indexing via stepper motor control. Also
compatible with load-lock transfer.

Rotary Substrate Platen
Accommodates up to 300 mm Ø substrates. Mounted on hinged door for easy access and includes positionable quartz crystal thickness monitor.

PHASE II-J COMPUTER CONTROL

The AJA Labview based Phase II-J computer control system is used on all ATC-B Series Batch Coaters. This straightforward, user friendly control system utilizes a large, flat-screen laptop in a 19” rack drawer connected to a single 7” high x 19” wide rack mount hardware module. The back panel of the hardware module is populated with connectors to interface to all aspects of the sputtering system.

The Phase II-J control system allows the user to operate in either the “manual mode” or the “automated processing mode”. In the “automated processing mode”, the user designs process “layers” which are then compiled and saved as a “process”. The system allows 104 unique user entry points which are accessible only by password, limiting access to a user’s layers and preventing unexpected corruption of a user’s saved processes.

The standard Phase II-J control system will accommodate up to (5) DC power supplies, (4) RF power supplies, (1) 4-way DC switchbox, (1) 4-way RF switchbox, (4) process gases, closed loop automatic pressure control and substrate temperature control. Processes are aborted if plasma is not detected. Special “soak layers” can be easily incorporated into the process. Finally, data logging is standard with an adjustable refresh period. Process data can be downloaded to common spreadsheet programs.

Labview Computer Control
Large screen laptop on convenient slide drawer
for Labview based ATC system computer control. Replacement laptops are always in stock.

Computer Control Module Phase IIJ PLC
Compact 4U rack mount case. This module is fitted from the outset with all receptacles for quick field retrofits/upgrades.