Manufacturing of innovative Thin-Film Systems
By cooperating with the Fraunhofer-Institut we manufacture different PECVD-Equipments. On this site you will find an overview of already completed facilites and equipment.
Equipment Type 1
Standard PECVD-Equipment with parallel plate design for the generation of a capacity coupled RF-Plasma (13.56 MHz):
This standard unit, based on capacity coupled RF-Plasma generation technology, has been developed in the scope of two PhD thesis carried out jointly by inprotec AG and the Fraunhofer-Institut IWM. In difference to the available technology, a new deposition concept was developed and brought to production stage: the new conception allowed the reactor being able to adapt itself to the geometry of the parts to be coated.
A flexible method of construction driving to an easily expandable work volume provides the scale-up ability of the process by keeping the optimum deposition parameters. This Equipment Type 1 can be supplied either as Laboratory Unit or as customized Production Line.
Equipment Type 2
A maintenance-poor and extremely 3D-versatile PECVD-Equipment for the generation of a capacity coupled RF-Plasma with REMOTE-properties (13.56 MHz):
Based on the experience the Fraunhofer-Institut IWM gained with the previous Equipment Type 1, a new, plasma supported process was developed in order to allow the separate steering and control of inherent and topographical properties of amorphous hydrocarbon layers. This independent PECVD-technique allows the specific structuring of DLC-Layers directly out of the process itself.
Maintenance-related stoppage could be reduced drastically by the focused manipulation of the ionic diffusion current enabling a layer set up exclusively on the substrate electrode. The modified plasma current path of this PECVD-technology not only avoids the creeping soiling of the equipment, but allows the full control of the most different plasma parameters during the deposition stage multiplying thus the total number of potential process windows. High layer deposition rates up to 1µm/min as well as the most different layer morphologies can be won, e.g. specifically structured DLC-Layers without a need of pre-structured substrates (In-Situ Structuring). The picture shows the prototype of an Equipment Type 2 in the Laboratory of the Fraunhofer-Institut IWM.
Equipment Type 3
A special version of the maintenance-poor Equipment Type 2:
A specifically customized Equipment designed for a large throughput of components to be coated when premises of reduced room height are provided. At the same time, the horizontal container permits the accurate thin-film deposition on extremely long and elongated substrates. The picture shows the prototype of Equipment Type 3 capable for mass-production in one of the Laboratories of the Fraunhofer-Institut IWM.