Plasma vapor deposition apparatus

Abstract

A plasma vapor deposition apparatus which can form high-quality films of ITO, for example, with high productivity, includes a vapor deposition chamber, a drive and a horizontally rotating circular holding plate connected to the drive located in a lower portion of the chamber, the circular holding plate having a circular vapor source material mounting centered at the rotational axis about which the plate is rotated by the drive, and coil-shaped electrodes for exciting vapor produced by evaporating the vapor source material. A film thickness correcting plate is interposed between the holding plate and the path along which the substrate is transported through the chamber by a transporting device. This plate is configured to so shield a portion of the substrate so that an excess of excited vapor particles do not accumulate at a given site on the surface of the substrate. Moreover, independently evacuatable evacuating sections are provided upstream and downstream of the vapor deposition chamber to constitute a processing line. The transporting device transports the substrate continuously along a first path through the processing line from an inlet section to an outline section. On the other hand, a return mechanism returns the substrate from the outlet section to the inlet section along a second path disposed above the first path.