Multiprocess Roll-to-Roll Web Coater, First Results

摘要

Cutting edge products like flexible displays, flexible printed circuits with high line density and flexible solar cells require production web coalers with multiprocess capability. Combinations of thermal evaporation of metals and organic materials, sputtering and PECVD in one coater are necessary to develop and produce those coatings with high throughput and at acceptable costs. A modular roll-to-roll PVD web coater that can incorporate different PVD technologies in one system was introduced at the 2004 SVC Technical Conference. With a modular design and a "linear" arrangement of unwind module, pre-treatment and process-modules and rewind module, there are no moving parts or dust generating processes on top of the coating drum. A small footprint and a small height allow the coater to fit completely into a standard size clean room. These are the prerequisites forproduction of defect free products such as flexible displays. Initial results of this system with respect to web handling, vacuum performance, and sputter deposition will be presented. Deposition rates and layer performance will be given for copper and for ITO, sputtered from both planar and rotatable magnetrons. With the rotatable magnetron ITO layers can be produced with a sheet resistivity of 30 Ohms/sqr at high visual transmission.