Aluminum Oxide (Al2O3) Sputtering Targets
Purity: 99.999%, Size: 1”, Thickness: 0.250”
Sputtering is a well-established technology capable of depositing thin films from a wide variety of materials onto diverse substrate shapes and sizes. The process using sputter targets is repeatable and can be scaled from small research and development projects to larger production batches. The process with sputter targets can be adapted for medium to large substrate areas. Chemical reactions may occur on the target surface, in-flight, or on the substrate, depending on the process parameters. While sputter deposition involves many variables, these parameters allow experts precise control over film growth and microstructure.
Applications of Sputtering Targets
Sputtering targets are used for film deposition. The deposition achieved by sputter targets is a method of creating thin films by sputtering, which involves eroding material from a “target” source onto a “substrate,” such as a silicon wafer. Semiconductor sputtering targets are used for etching the target. Sputter etching is chosen when a high degree of etching anisotropy is required and selectivity is not a concern.
Sputter targets are also used for analysis by etching away the target material. One example is secondary ion spectroscopy (SIMS), where the target sample is sputtered at a constant rate. As the target is sputtered, the concentration and identity of sputtered atoms are measured using mass spectrometry. With the help of the sputtering target, the composition of the target material can be determined, even detecting extremely low concentrations of impurities.
Sputtering targets also have applications in space. Sputtering is one form of space weathering, a process that alters the physical and chemical properties of airless bodies, such as asteroids and the Moon.
Aluminum oxide is a chemical compound of aluminum and oxygen with the chemical formula Al2O3. Al2O3 is widely used to produce aluminum metal, as an abrasive due to its hardness, and as a refractory material due to its high melting point. Aluminum oxide thin films obtained via aluminum oxide sputtering targets are extensively used in mechanical, optical, and microelectronic applications because of their excellent properties, including mechanical strength and hardness, transparency, high abrasion and corrosion resistance, as well as insulating and optical characteristics. These properties depend on various sputtering system parameters, such as sputtering rate, target-to-substrate distance, and reactive gas pressures.
Aluminum oxide thin films, which find important technological applications in optoelectronics, tribology, sensorics, and nanolithography, have been deposited by various techniques, including magnetron sputtering, atomic layer deposition, electron beam evaporation, spray pyrolysis, and oxidation of aluminum films.
In summary, Al2O3 exhibits unique properties, including chemical inertness, mechanical strength and hardness, high abrasion and corrosion resistance, a high electrical breakdown field, and a high dielectric constant. Thin films obtained using aluminum oxide sputtering targets have attracted significant attention from researchers worldwide. Aluminum oxide sputtering targets are suitable for research in mechanical and microelectronic applications, such as protective coatings, diffusion barriers, electronic seals, dielectric layers, and optical layers.
