Model 650 Diamond Deposition Reactor

Applications

Diamond deposition
Chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technology enables growth of thin diamond coatings on a wide variety of substrate materials. Use of advanced hot-filament technology allows deposition of high-quality, polycrystalline diamond films from 5 to 50 microns thick. Costs are minimized through fast deposition cycle turnaround, large deposition area, low electrical power consumption, and safe, reliable operation.

CVD applications

The Model 650 is well suited to applying diamond coatings to tungsten carbide cutting inserts, endmills, drills, wear surfaces, and other carbide-based items. Diamond coated tools are used for machining abrasive non-metallic materials such as graphite, green ceramics, reinforced plastics, carbon composites, and abrasive non-ferrous metals such as silicon aluminum alloys.
In contrast to other diamond tooling techniques, such as PCD, diamond CVD coatings can be applied to cutting tools of virtually any configuration and size, including inserts with chipbreakers and other geometries.
While initially developed for coating carbide cutting tools, applications of the Model 650 have expanded to encompass:

– semiconductor wafers in sizes up to 300mm,
– silicon substrates for thermal management,
– amorphous silicon deposition for solar cells and other products,
– titanium electrodes for water treatment and electrochemistry,
– MEMS, photonic, microelectronic and nanocrystalline devices,
– passivation layers for semiconductor chucks,
– flat panel displays,
– windows for X-ray lithogaphy, and
– slab diamond production.

The Model 650 can be considered for any application requiring coating large or irregular surfaces with uniform diamond films.

This RAMAN spectrograph demonstrates the purity of the diamond film produced by the Model 650 CVD Reactor

Click here for larger image
Cutting tools—high throughput at low cost
The deposition area of the Model 650 is large: 350mm x 375mm (131,000 square mm) or 14" x 15" (210 square inches)
A 1 micron per hour average growth rate and quick turnaround between runs, coupled with efficient use of power and gasses and the ability to run unattended for long periods, provides high throughput at low cost. For example, the Model 650 can coat more than 70,000 SPG-322 inserts per year.
Its economical operation and 30 kW power consumption enable the Model 650 to produce the lowest cost diamond coatings on the market.
The Model 650 offers options for planar deposition (illustrated at left) and three-dimensional deposition with round tool fixturing (right).
Semiconductor wafers
The broad deposition area of the Model 650 enables diamond coatings to be applied to wafers in all sizes up to 300mm (12 inches). The chamber accommodates nine 100mm wafers, four 150mm wafers, two 200mm wafers or one 300mm wafer.
Coatings are of high quality with a uniformity within ±10% over the entire wafer surface.
Titanium elecrodes
Diamond-coated electrodes are used for water treatment and electrochemistry. The photo shows a titanium electrode measuring 12" by 12".
MEMS devices
The high thermal conductivity of diamond enables thin-film diamond coatings to be used in MEMS, photonic and microelectronic devices for improved thermal management. The high modulus of diamond allows the operational frequency of MEMS RF resonators to be pushed into the GHz frequency bands. The illustration shows a 3 MHz CVD diamond resonator.
Because of diamond's hardness and low stiction, thin-film diamond coatings may be used to protect MEMS and nanodevices against surface wear.
More information on MEMS applications using thin diamond films is presented in this article published in Solid State Technology, June 2006.
MEMS structure built from sp3 diamond-on-silicon wafer. Photo courtesy of UC Berkeley.
Wear surfaces
Diamond coatings can be used to protect surfaces that are prone to heavy wear. Smooth, adherent diamond coatings afford protection from wear while in many applications imparting lower friction than other materials. These coatings can significantly extend the life of wear parts and reduce maintenance costs dramatically. (Photos show wear parts at left, seals at right.)
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OverviewReactor DescriptionDeposition ControlFilm Uniformity Specifications