Sony Corporation

Praxair S.t. Technology, Inc.

Eiichi Shimizu

Hidemasa Tamura

Norio Yokoyama

Fumio Sasaki

Paul S Gilman

Chi-Fung Lo

Hitoshi Shimomuki

Tetsuya Kojima

A contoured sputtering target includes a target member of sputtering material having a top surface, a bottom surface and an outer peripheral surface. One or more contoured annular regions are formed on the top surface of the target member that extend radially inwardly from the outer peripheral surface and away from the bottom surface. The target member may further include planar, concave or central recessed regions formed in the top surface that are surrounded by the one or more contoured annular regions. The configuration of the target member reduces generation of contaminating particles from nodules that may form near the outer peripheral surface of the target during a sputtering operation. Methods of forming a contoured sputtering target are also disclosed.

Contoured sputtering target

A method for producing a sputtering target assembly consisting of a target member used for sputtering and a backing plate bonded to the target member, which assembly has a high adherence strength and a high bonding strength as well as a sufficient tensile strength even under a high temperature. When producing a sputtering target assembly consisting of a target member used for sputtering and a backing plate bonded to the target member, bonding surfaces of the target member and the backing plate are made flat so as to have an arithmetic mean roughness Ra of 0.01 to 1.0 .mu.m before carrying out solid phase diffusion bonding between the target member and the backing plate.

Sputtering target assembly production method

The present invention provides a sputtering target which generates a reduced quantity of particles during a sputtering and a method for producing such a sputtering target. Mirror treatment is carried out to a sputter surface 2 which is sputtered when forming a thin film, so that the sputter surface 2 has an arithmetic mean roughness Ra of 0.01 .mu.m or below. A sputtering target 1 with such a smooth sputter surface 2 having a small surface roughness enables to reduce a number of particles generated during a sputtering.

Sputtering target and production method thereof

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Miyagi, Japan

Eiichi Shimizu