W.c. Heraeus Gmbh

W.c. Heraeus Gmbh & Co Kg

Friatec Aktiengesellschaft

Jorg Schielke

David Francis Lupton

Friedhold Scholz

Bernard Serole

Hans-Joachim Graf

Marek Gorywoda

Michael Hormann

Klaus Petermann

Karl-Heinz Goy

Hans Bohmeier

Arno Reckziegel

Manfred Weigelt

Eric Mix

Livio Fornasiero

A process for making a crystalline solid-solution powder which involves reacting at least two reactants in a plasma arc of a plasma chamber and blast-cooling the resultant product in a high velocity gas stream to form the powder. The first reactant is a molten metal alloy and the second reactant is a gas. The reaction is carried out in a plasma arc and the products rapidly cooled by a gas stream acting at the outlet opening of the plasma chamber. The crystalline solid-solution powder formed by the process has a low electrical resistivity. If an indium-tin alloy is used as the first reactant and oxygen as the second reactant, there is obtained an indium-tin-oxide (ITO) crystalline solid-solution powder which, when compacted to 40% of its theoretical density, has an electrical resistivity in the range of about 2 .OMEGA.cm. This ITO crystalline solid-solution powder is particularly suitable for preparing an ITO target, with high electrical conductivity and thus high achievable sputtering rates.

Process for making a crystalline solid-solution powder with low

A sintered rhenium crucible, highly suitable for growing single crystals from refractory metal oxides, for example by the Czochralski technique, is formed of fine rhenium powder, by sintering. A compact is formed by cold isostatic pressing and thereafter the compact is sintered at 500-2800.degree. C. to obtain a sintered crucible. Product density is limited to 88-95% of theroretical in order to maximize creep resistance.

Crucible for growing single crystals, process for making the same and

A method of manufacturing an electrically conductive cermet that includes less than 35% by volume of a precious metal by mixing a powdered refractory ceramic with the powdered metal, molding the mixture into a green, and sintering the green to create a cermet with a dense ceramic phase and a metallic phase in the form of a coherent network. The object is good electric conductivity at a low metal content. The precious metal powder is selected to shrink less and exhibits less sintering tendency as it forms the metallic phase than does the ceramic powder as it forms the ceramic phase.

Method of manufacturing an electrically conductive cermet

The targets for cathodic sputtering according to this invention are formed of hot-pressed or hot isostatic-pressed indium oxide/tin oxide powder with a minimum density of 95% of the theoretical density and with a sub-stoichiometric oxygen content are known. In order to provide the improvement of high stability and, simultaneously, high sputtering rate, it is proposed according to the invention that the target have a crystalline phase which is formed as a solid solution of indium oxide and tin oxide with a minimum of 90% by weight, preferably a minimum of 97%, of the solid solution, and which has an average grain size ranging from 2 .mu.m to 20 .mu.m. In order to make available a simple and cost-efficient method for producing a target consisting of a starting powder of indium oxide/tin oxide, which allows for a precise setting of the oxygen content and a homogeneous chemical composition throughout the entire target volume, it is proposed that a starting powder be used that is produced by oxidizing finely distributed indium tin metal.

Target for cathodic sputtering and method for producing the target

A component made of sintered oxides of indium and tin and a method of manufacturing such a component. The mean size of the oxide particles is larger than 2 .mu.m. The empirical density of the component is more than 95% of theoretical. The component is characterized in that at least 97 weight % of the oxide particles are solid solution crystals with a crystalline matrix of indium oxide. The method comprises molding a green body of a powder of indium-oxide and tin-oxide solid solution and sintering the green body at a temperature less than 1100.degree. C. and preferably between 800.degree. and 1050.degree. C.

Method of manufacture of components made of sintered indium-tin-oxide

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Bruchkobel, Germany

Jorg Schielke