A new approach to the deposition of elemental boron and boron-based coatings by pulsed magnetron sputtering of loosely packed boron powder targets

Audronis, Martynas, Kelly, Peter, Leyland, Adrian and Matthews, Allan (2007) A new approach to the deposition of elemental boron and boron-based coatings by pulsed magnetron sputtering of loosely packed boron powder targets. In: Tenth International Conference on Plasma Surface Engineering, 10th September 2006 - 15th September 2006, Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany.

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Abstract

Large numbers of potential application areas for elemental boron and boron-based thin film materials make this subject area a focus of significant scientific and industrial interest. Applications include thermoelectric energy conversion devices, biomedical implants, metalworking tools and automotive components. Boron is however also recognised widely to be a difficult-to-deposit material. Therefore, a new technique to deposit boron (and other boron-based materials) by pulsed magnetron sputtering of loosely packed powder targets has been proposed. Among the benefits of this approach are: improved stability of the deposition process, increased speed and flexibility of target preparation, enhanced time- and cost-effectiveness and the ability to control readily the target and hence the chemical composition of the coating.