Patent ID: 11891686
Assignee: nan
Field: Surface technology, coating (Chemistry)
Classification: CPC C  G  H | IPC C  G  H

Claim 6:
7. The apparatus according to claim 1, comprising at least first and second magnetron sputtering devices, the first magnetron sputtering device being configured to sputter metal towards the mount from a first sputtering target comprising metal, thereby defining a metal sputtering zone within the vacuum chamber, the second magnetron sputtering device being configured to sputter non-metal or metalloid towards the mount from a second sputtering target comprising non-metal or metalloid, thereby defining a non-metal or metalloid sputtering zone within the vacuum chamber, wherein a first static sputtering mask is located between the first sputtering target and the mount, the first sputtering mask being configured such that when each substrate is moved through the metal sputtering zone on the mount, a layer of metal material having a non-uniform thickness is deposited on said substrate, and a second static sputtering mask is located between the second sputtering target and the mount, the second sputtering mask being configured such that when each substrate is moved through the non-metal or metalloid sputtering zone on the mount, a layer of non-metal or metalloid material having a non-uniform thickness is deposited on said substrate, and wherein the first and second magnetron sputtering devices, the mount, the first and the second sputtering masks are configured to repeat the deposition such that alternating layers of metal and non-metal or metalloid materials are formed on the one or more substrates, and each of the alternating layers is of non-uniform thickness, and wherein the first and the second sputtering masks are configured to deposit one or more variable interference filters onto one or more substrates and are configured to take into account respectively the angular distribution of the sputtered metal and the angular distribution of the sputtered non-metal or metalloid.