The possibility that charged nanoparticles (CNPs) are generated in the gas phase during direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering of Ag is studied. Sputtered Ag particles could be captured on an ultrathin amorphous carbon membrane for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) observation. It is confirmed that the average particle size and the total area of deposition under the condition of the positive bias applied to the substrate are bigger than those under the condition of the negative bias applied to the substrate. The results indicate that some of the sputtered Ag particles are negatively charged. To evaluate the contribution of negatively-charged particles to the film growth, Ag thin films were deposited for 30 min on the Si substrate with the substrate biases of −300, 0 and +300 V and analyzed by field-emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and four-point probe. When +300 V was applied to the substrate, the film growth rate was highest with the film thickness of 85.0 nm, the crystallinity was best with the smallest full width at half maximum (FWHM) value of 0.44 and the resistivity was smallest with 3.67 μΩ·cm. In contrast, when −300 V was applied to the substrate, the film growth rate was lowest with the film thickness of 68.9 nm, the crystallinity was worst with the largest FWHM value of 0.53 and the resistivity was largest with 8.87 μΩ·cm. This result indicates that the charge plays an important role in film growth and can be a new process parameter in sputtering.

中文翻译：

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带电银纳米粒子对直流磁控溅射过程中薄膜生长的影响

研究了在直流电（DC）磁控溅射银时气相中生成带电纳米粒子（CNP）的可能性。可以将溅射的Ag颗粒捕获在超薄非晶碳膜上，以进行透射电子显微镜（TEM）观察。可以确定的是，在施加于基板上的正偏压的条件下，平均粒径和总沉积面积大于在施加于基板上的负偏压的条件下的平均粒径和总沉积面积。结果表明，一些溅射的Ag颗粒带负电。为了评估带负电的粒子对薄膜生长的贡献，在-300的衬底偏置下，在Si衬底上沉积了30分钟的Ag薄膜，0和+300 V，并通过场发射扫描电子显微镜（FESEM），X射线衍射（XRD）和四点探针进行分析。当在基板上施加+300 V时，膜生长速度最高，膜厚度为85.0 nm，结晶度最好，最小半峰全宽（FWHM）值为0.44，电阻率最小，为3.67μΩ ·厘米。相反，当在基板上施加-300 V时，膜的生长速度最低，膜厚为68.9 nm，结晶度最差，最大FWHM值为0.53，电阻率最大，为8.87μΩ·cm。该结果表明，电荷在膜生长中起重要作用，并且可以是溅射中的新工艺参数。膜厚为85.0 nm时，膜的生长速率最高；半峰全宽（FWHM）值为0.44时，结晶度最好；电阻率为3.67μΩ·cm时，电阻率最小。相反，当在基板上施加-300 V时，膜的生长速度最低，膜厚为68.9 nm，结晶度最差，最大FWHM值为0.53，电阻率最大，为8.87μΩ·cm。该结果表明，电荷在膜生长中起重要作用，并且可以是溅射中的新工艺参数。膜厚为85.0 nm时，膜的生长速率最高；半峰全宽（FWHM）值为0.44时，结晶度最好；电阻率为3.67μΩ·cm时，电阻率最小。相反，当在基板上施加-300 V时，膜的生长速度最低，膜厚为68.9 nm，结晶度最差，最大FWHM值为0.53，电阻率最大，为8.87μΩ·cm。该结果表明，电荷在膜生长中起重要作用，并且可以是溅射中的新工艺参数。膜厚68.9 nm时膜生长速率最低，FWHM值为0.53时结晶度最差，电阻率8.87μΩ·cm最大。该结果表明，电荷在膜生长中起重要作用，并且可以是溅射中的新工艺参数。膜厚68.9 nm时膜生长速率最低，FWHM值为0.53时结晶度最差，电阻率8.87μΩ·cm最大。该结果表明，电荷在膜生长中起重要作用，并且可以是溅射中的新工艺参数。