Sputter Deposition of Metallic Sponges

摘要

Metallic films are grown with a sponge-like morphology in the as-deposited condition using planar magnetron sputtering. The morphology of the deposit is characterized by metallic continuity in three dimensions with continuous porosity on the sub-micron scale. The stabilization of the metallic sponge is directly correlated with a limited range for the sputter deposition parameters of working gas pressure and substrate temperature. This sponge-like morphology augments the features as generally understood in the classic zone models of growth for physical vapor deposits. Nickel coatings are deposited with working gas pressures up to 4 Pa and for substrate temperatures up to 1 100 K. The morphology of the deposits is examined in plan and in cross-section with scanning electron microscopy. The parametric range of gas pressure and substrate temperature (relative to absolute melt point) for the deposition processing under which the metallic sponges are produced appear universal for many metals, as for example, including gold, silver, and aluminum.