Current distribution on the substrate in a vacuum arc deposition setup

The effect of a magnetic field generated by a planar magnetron on the ion current distribution on the substrate has been investigated as a function of the substrate voltage and gas pressure for two configurations of the magnetic field. The probe and the substrate were biased by negative potentials of -60 to -280 V with respect to the grounded anode, in order to collect the saturated ion current and investigate the influence of the magnetron magnetic field on the distribution of the ion flux of the vacuum arc source. It was shown that the planar magnetron placed under the substrate strongly affects the ion current and ion current distribution near the substrate. For a broad pressure range, the maximum ion flux collected by the probe increased by 40%, while the net ion current to the substrate increased by 20%. We have demonstrated that the ion current increased by 18%, and maximum ion current density increased by 40%. The results were explained in terms of the plasma flux interaction with the magnetic field of the magnetron. The setup may be suitable for controlling ion flux density on large substrates.