Sputtering device for manufacturing superconducting oxide material and method therefor

Claim 1

A sputtering device for manufacturing a thin film of a superconducting oxide material on a substrate comprising: a pair of spaced apart targets each having a substantially planar sputtering surface provided within a chamber in mutual opposition to define a film-forming region therebetween; means for supporting in said film forming region at least one substrate to be coated having a substantially planar film-forming surface portion on which said thin film of superconducting oxide material is to be formed, said at least one film forming surface portion being oriented substantially parallel to said sputtering surfaces; and means for creating a magnetic field between the two targets, said means for creating a magnetic field positioned relative to said means for supporting a substrate such that the magnetic field is induced normal to the at least one substrate surface portion to be coated where the means for creating the magnetic field includes a first magnetic pole having a first polarity and a second magnetic pole of a polarity opposite to that of said first polarity whereby the magnetic field extends from said first magnetic pole through (a) the first one of said pair of targets, (b) the at least one substrate, and (c) the second one of said pair of targets, and then to said second magnetic pole; wherein the at least one film-forming surface portion is positioned in the magnetic field to expedite the formation of a superconducting oxide material.

Claim 4

A method for sputtering a thin film of a superconducting oxide material generally represented by the expression (A l-x B x ) y Cu z O w , where x=0.1 to 1, y=2.0 to 4.0, z=1.0 to 4.0 and w=4.0 to 10.0, A is at least one member selected from the group of Sc (Scandium), Y (yttrium), Gd (gadolinium), Yb (ytterbium), Eu (europium), Tb (terbium), Dy (dysprosium), Ho (holmium), Er (erbium), Tm (thulium), Lu (lutetium), and other lanthanoids, and B is at least one member selected from the group of Ba (barium), Sr (strontium); and Ca (calcium); or by the expression (A l-x B x ) y Cu z O w , where A is one or more elements of Group V b of the Periodic Table, B is one or more elements of Group IIa of the Periodic Table; x=0.3 to 1; y=2.0 to 4.0; z=1.0 to 4.0; and w=4.0 to 10.0 onto a substrate comprising the steps of: providing at least one target having a sputtering surface comprising elements of said superconducting oxide material and a substrate having a film-forming surface portion on which said superconducting oxide material is to be formed; creating a magnetic field so that the film-forming surface portion is placed in the magnetic field with the magnetic field induced normal to the substrate surface portion and the strength of the magnetic field is sufficient to align the c axis of the superconducting oxide material perpendicular to the film forming surface portion; and sputtering said superconducting oxide material onto the film-forming surface portion, so that said thin film of superconducting oxide material is formed on the film-forming surface portion of said substrate.

Claim 5

A method for sputtering a thin film of a superconducting oxide material generally represented by the expression (A l-x B x ) y Cu z O w , where x=0.1 to 1, y=2.0 to 4.0, z=1.0 to 4.0 and w=4.0 to 10.0, A is at least one member selected from the group of Sc (Scandium), Y (yttrium), Gd (gadolinium), Yb (ytterbium), Eu (europium), Tb (terbium), Dy (dysprosium), Ho (holmium), Er (erbium), Tm (thulium), Lu (lutetium), and other lanthanoids, and B is at least one member selected from the group of Ba (barium), Sr (strontium); and Ca (calcium); or by the expression (A l-x B x ) y Cu z O w , where A is one or more elements of Group V b of the Periodic Table, B is one or more elements of Group IIa of the Periodic Table; x=0.3 to 1; y=2.0 to 4.0; z=1.0 to 4.0; and w=4.0 to 10.0 onto a substrate comprising the steps of: providing at least one target having a sputtering surface comprising elements of said superconducting oxide material and a substrate having a film-forming surface portion on which said superconducting oxide material is to be formed; creating a magnetic field so that the film-forming surface portion is placed in the magnetic field with the magnetic field induced normal to the substrate surface portion and the strength of the magnetic field is sufficient to align the c axis of the superconducting oxide material perpendicular to the film forming surface portion; and sputtering said superconducting oxide material onto the film-forming surface portion, so that said thin film of superconducting oxide material is formed on the film-forming surface portion of said substrate.