Physicochemical model for reactive sputtering of hot target

A physicochemical model for reactive magnetron sputtering of a metal target is described in this paper. The target temperature in the model is defined as a function of the ion current density. Synthesis of the coating occurs due to the surface chemical reaction. The law of mass action, the Langmuir isotherm and the Arrhenius equation for non-isothermal conditions were used for mathematical description of the reaction. The model takes into consideration thermal electron emission and evaporation of the target surface. The system of eight algebraic equations, describing the model, was solved for the tantalum target sputtered in the oxygen environment. It was established that the hysteresis effect disappears with the increase of the ion current density. - Highlights: • When model is applied for a cold target, hysteresis width is proportional to the ion current density. • Two types of processes of hot target sputtering are possible, depending on the current density: with and without the hysteresis. • Sputtering process is dominant at current densities less than 50 A/m² and evaporation can be neglected. • For current densities over 50 A/m² the hysteresis width reaches its maximum and the role of evaporation increases.