초록 ▼

A method for depositing and tailoring anisotropic properties of ceramic oxide superconductive films onto the outer surface of fibers, wires, rods, bars and onto the inner surface of tubes, as well as onto the surface of disc-shaped substrates, employs either tandem magnetron discharges alone or both

A method for depositing and tailoring anisotropic properties of ceramic oxide superconductive films onto the outer surface of fibers, wires, rods, bars and onto the inner surface of tubes, as well as onto the surface of disc-shaped substrates, employs either tandem magnetron discharges alone or both an abnormal glow cold cathode electron gun together with tandem magnetron discharges. This deposition method provides uniform thin films having high growth rates, controllable stoichiometry and desired anisotropic microstructure. The magnetron cathodes are made from either mixtures or single elements of the metals. The oxygen component is achieved either from the cathode material itself or by reactive sputtering in an oxygen ambient or a post-deposition thermal or plasma oxidation. An external electron beam may also be used for in-situ annealing of the deposited films while placed under an external applied magnetic field to better align crystals in the films for the desired anisotropic superconducting properties. Thin metal or dielectric thin films are deposited as an interface layer and are placed both on the top of and under the metal oxide ceramic superconductive film material. Hermetic seal layers are deposited to protect the ceramic oxide superconductive films from being poisoned by foreign atoms.

대표청구항 ▼

A method for depositing a superconducting thin film of metal oxide ceramic materials onto the outer surface of a substrate, the method comprising: introducing a substrate to be coated into a vacuum chamber apparatus that includes a cylindrical magnetron having a longitudinal axis substantially coinc

A method for depositing a superconducting thin film of metal oxide ceramic materials onto the outer surface of a substrate, the method comprising: introducing a substrate to be coated into a vacuum chamber apparatus that includes a cylindrical magnetron having a longitudinal axis substantially coincident with a longitudinal axis of the substrate, having a cylindrical extraction grid coaxially positioned with respect to the substrate, having a cylindrical anode of diameter greater than that of the cylindrical extraction grid and coaxially positioned with respect to the substrate, having a cylindrical cathode of diameter greater than that of the cylindrical anode and coaxially positioned with respect to the substrate and the cylindrical anode, said cylindrical cathode comprising at least three metal materials, and having a cylindrical solenoid of diameter greater than that of the cylindrical cathode and coaxially positioned with respect to the substrate, the cylindrical extraction grid, the cylindrical cathode, and the cylindrical anode; establishing a controlled gas atmosphere within the vacuum chamber apparatus, the controlled gas atmosphere including a sputter gas comprising an inert gas and a reactive gas mixture comprising at least oxygen; applying operating voltages to the elements of the cylindrical magnetron such that the metal materials of the cylindrical cathode are sputtered therefrom and deposited uniformly onto the outer surface of the substrate and such that a cylindrical magnetron plasma dissociates the reactive gas mixture into oxygen atoms to enhance oxidation of the one or more sputtered ternary metal materials to form the film of metal oxide ceramic materials.