Aluminum Nitride (AlN) Sputtering Targets
Purity: 99.8% | Size: 2” | Thickness: 0.250”
AlN sputtering targets are ideal for depositing high-quality thin films on diverse substrate shapes and sizes. The process is repeatable and scalable, suitable for small research projects as well as larger production batches. Depending on process parameters, chemical reactions may occur on the target surface, in-flight, or on the substrate. The adjustable parameters provide precise control over film growth and microstructure.
Applications
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Thin Film Deposition: Material is eroded from a target and deposited onto substrates like silicon wafers.
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Semiconductor Etching: Sputter etching is used when high anisotropy is required without the need for selectivity.
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Material Analysis: Secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS) uses sputtering to analyze composition and detect trace impurities.
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Space Applications: Contributes to space weathering, altering physical and chemical properties of airless bodies, including asteroids and the Moon.
Aluminum nitride (AlN) is a chemical compound with excellent physical, chemical, and mechanical properties. Its wide band gap (~6.2 eV), high refractive index (~2.0), and very low absorption coefficient (<10⁻³) make it ideal for optical and optoelectronic devices. Its thermal and chemical stability ensures performance in challenging environments.
Deposition Methods
AlN films can be deposited via pulsed laser deposition, reactive molecular beam epitaxy, vacuum/cathodic arc deposition, DC/RF reactive sputtering, ion beam sputtering, and metal-organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD). Magnetron sputtering is widely used due to its simplicity, reproducibility, scalability, and cost efficiency.
Film properties depend on crystal structure, orientation, microstructure, and composition, which are influenced by sputtering power, pulse frequency, duty cycle, growth temperature, nitrogen/argon flow ratio, and sputtering gas pressure. AlN sputtering targets perform effectively with reactive DC magnetron sputtering systems.
