Fabrication of vanadium oxide for uncooled FPAs using dual magnetron AC sputtering

This paper presents a novel equipment with an improved structure of the magnetron sputtering for thin film fabrication. By using this equipment, a vanadium oxide thin film with a better TCR and uniformity can be fabricated. In this equipment, two magnets are aligned with the wafer table eccentrically so that the coupling effect is rendered. This changes the distribution of magnetic field lines for each single sputtering target; as a result, a magnetic field gradient in the z-directionis generated, which acts on Ar together with the alternating current (AC) electric field. Consequently, the goal of using relatively small sputtering target material to generate large uniform film on the substrate is achieved. Besides, there being no sedimentary insulation on the anode as the traditional structure, it can avoid the periodical purification for the equipment to ensure the continuous work.