PM specialist Plansee has taken out a European patent for an internal protective layer for monolithic rotary targets that prevents the coating material from coming into direct contact with the system's cooling water.
Plansee's molybdenum coating materials can be used in a variety of applications, for instance as rear contacts in CIGS solar cells or thin-film transistors in flat-panel screens, the company said. Monolithic targets do not need a backing tube, since they are made 100% from molybdenum, and material utilization is increased by up to 30 % compared with bonded targets. The use of monolithic targets also permits a power density of up to 30 kW/m, which means a higher coating rate, Plansee says.
Monolithic targets are also in direct contact with the coating systems’ cooling water which contains inhibitors to stabilize the conductivity and the pH value and has to be added at regular intervals. Plansee's polymer-based internal coating prevents the coating material from coming into contact with the cooling water, it says.
This story uses material from Plansee, with editorial changes made by Materials Today. The views expressed in this article do not necessarily represent those of Elsevier.
