Lithium Cobalt Oxide (LiCoO2) Sputtering Targets
Purity: 99.9%, Size: 3”, Thickness: 0.125”
Sputtering is a proven technology capable of depositing thin films from a wide variety of materials onto diverse substrate shapes and sizes.
The process with sputter targets is repeatable and can be scaled up from small research and development projects. The process with sputter targets can be adapted to production batches involving medium to large substrate areas. The chemical reaction can occur on the target surface, in-flight, or on the substrate depending on the process parameters. The many parameters make sputter deposition a complex process but allow experts a high degree of control over the growth and microstructure of the deposited area.
Applications of Sputtering Targets
Sputtering targets are used for film deposition. The deposition made by sputter targets is a method of depositing thin films by sputtering that involves eroding material from a “target” source onto a “substrate,” such as a silicon wafer.
Semiconductor sputtering targets are used to etch the target. Sputter etching is chosen in cases where a high degree of etching anisotropy is needed and selectivity is not a concern.
Sputter targets are also used for analysis by etching away the target material. One example occurs in secondary ion mass 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, and even extremely low concentrations of impurities can be detected.
Sputtering targets also have applications in space. Sputtering is one of the forms of space weathering, a process that changes the physical and chemical properties of airless bodies, such as asteroids and the Moon.
Lithium cobalt oxide is a chemical compound with the formula LiCoO2. Lithium cobalt oxide is a dark blue or bluish-gray crystalline solid and is commonly used in the positive electrodes of lithium-ion batteries.
Now let’s see how lithium cobalt oxide sputtering targets can be used in batteries. Batteries with very small sizes are of immense interest, as the sizes of portable microelectronic devices and sensors continue to decrease. Thin film batteries can be used as power sources for various low-power electronic devices, such as portable electronic devices and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), which require very low power and current levels and can therefore be powered by thin film batteries.
In battery applications, a magnetron sputter system can be used. The required thin film lithium can generally be deposited by conventional sputtering target techniques, whereby a LiCoO2 sputtering target assembly, defined as the LiCoO2 sputtering target bonded to a backing plate, can be used to deposit the required thin film lithium. For producing Li thin films, a D.C. (direct current) magnetron sputter system can be employed. The LiCoO2 sputtering target is generally represented by the formula LiCoO2 and forms part of a cathode assembly that, together with an anode, is placed in an evacuated chamber filled with an inert gas, preferably argon. Magnets are disposed above the LiCoO2 sputtering target, and a switch connects the target backing plate to a D.C. voltage source. A substrate support is positioned below the LiCoO2 sputter target within the chamber.
In operation, a high-voltage electrical field is applied across the cathode and the anode. The inert gas is ionized by collisions with electrons ejected from the cathode. Positively charged gas ions are attracted to the cathode and, upon impingement with the target surface, dislodge the target material. The dislodged target material traverses the evacuated enclosure and deposits as a LiCoO2 thin film on the desired substrate, which is normally located close to the anode.
