Advanced coatings through pulsed magnetron sputtering

Pulsed magnetron sputtering (PMS) has become established as the process of choice for the deposition of dielectric materials for many applications. The process is attractive because it offers stable arc free operating conditions during the deposition of, for example, functional films on architectural and automotive glass, or antireflective/antistatic coatings on displays. Recent studies have shown that pulsing the magnetron discharge also leads to hotter and more energetic plasmas in comparison with continuous dc discharges, with increased ion energy fluxes delivered to the substrate. As such, the PMS process offers benefits in the deposition of a wide range of materials. The present paper describes three examples where PMS has led to either significant enhancement in film properties or enhanced process flexibility: in low friction titanium nitride coatings, in Al doped zinc oxide transparent conductive oxide coatings sputtered directly from powder targets and in thin film photovoltaic devices based on copper (indium/gallium) diselenide. These examples demonstrate the versatility of PMS and open up new opportunities for the production of advanced coatings using this technique