Several household products would not exist today without the usage of sputtering. Sputtering is used heavily in the medical industry, creating products plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. The process is also responsible for many kinds of household products that you probably use every day.
Sputtering Defined
Sputtering is the process of depositing thin layers of film onto an object. You can think of sputtering like tinting the windows on a car, but the process occurs at a microscopic level. In medical technology, for instance, sputtering uses vacuum deposition systems to apply a viscous coating to something that will enter the bloodstream. This keeps the device from gaining too much mass. Household products aren’t as concerned with mass, but there are a variety of reasons why a microscopic layer of film could be useful.
Mirrors
A microscopic layer of film applied to a pane of glass creates a mirror. The early days of mirror manufacturing involved a layer of mercury applied to a sheet of plate glass, usually to the back of the surface. The result is a kind of looking glass, where the mirror seems behind the glass pane.
Safety glass mirrors use a special film that helps the glass break a certain way to avoid injuries. Silkscreen glass windows apply their colors to a specially treated film that allows the dyes to adhere. Silvery glass mirrors are ordinary panes of glass with a thin film of silver to provide reflectivity.
Computers
Silicon can act like a conductor in certain situations, a fact that helped create the “Silicon Valley.” Engineers discovered that by purifying and melting silicon, they could reshape the substance and create circuit boards. Still, anyone with a laptop can appreciate the process of sputtering.
Once the board is made from the silicon, sputtering is used to lay down chemicals that form the basis of the circuits. The actual characteristics of the board are based on the types of chemicals used, and the formation of those chemicals. Without sputtering, laptops and desktops wouldn’t exist along with hundreds of other household appliances.
Cameras
Cameras themselves don’t use sputtering outside of the formation of their circuit boards, but the lenses might. Thin film coatings help protect lenses from UV light and scratches. Special coatings can also add colored filters, which are useful in film. This process occurs in a vacuum, where the lens (called a substrate) is allowed to absorb the chemicals as they are heated and allowed to flow freely within a sealed chamber.
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Denton Vacuum, LLC makes sputtering systems that can help manufacture Diamond like carbon. For more information on sputtering systems, contact Denton Vacuum, LLC.