Patent ID: 6022598
Filing Date: 2000-02-08
Classification: C23C

Abstract:
A method of forming a film comprised of sapphire and tungsten, the method comprising the steps of:providing a substrate having a surface;providing sapphire material in a crucible comprised of tungsten material, the crucible having a nozzle;heating the crucible to a predetermined temperature to cause a tungsten vapor to form, thereby causing the tungsten material to mix with the sapphire material within the crucible, the heating step also causing the mixture of sapphire material and tungsten material within the crucible to be vaporized at a predetermined vapor pressure, the crucible vapor pressure being greater in magnitude than a predetermined pressure value of a vacuum region external to the crucible, thereby causing the vapor to be ejected through the nozzle and into the vacuum region and forming clusters of atoms of the sapphire material and the tungsten material by adiabatic expansion, the atomic clusters being formed in the vacuum region outside of the crucible in the vicinity of the nozzle;bombarding the atomic clusters with electrons, thereby resulting in at least one of the atomic clusters being partially ionized along with any remaining atomic clusters remaining non-ionized; andaccelerating both the ionized and non-ionized atomic clusters toward the surface of the substrate, thereby forming the film comprised of sapphire and tungsten on the surface of the substrate.