Metal film and metal film-coated member, metal oxide film and metal oxide film-coated member, thin film forming apparatus and thin film forming method for producing metal film and metal oxide film

Abstract

The metal film of the present invention is a dense film of a single crystal that has very low surface roughness and very good crystal orientation because an arithmetic mean roughness of the surface is not larger than 2 nm and a ( 111 ) peak intensity of X-ray diffraction is not less than 20 times the sum of all other peaks. Also the metal oxide film of the present invention is a dense film that includes less oxygen defects and almost no voids therein because a content of a non-oxidized metal is not higher than 1 mole % of a metal component that constitutes the metal oxide and a packing density is 0.98 or higher.

1 - 42 . (canceled)  
     
     
         43 . A thin film forming apparatus comprising: 
 a chamber wherein the thin film forming process is carried out;    a substrate holding means that is made of an electrically conductive material and holds the substrate, over the surface of which a thin film is to be formed, in the chamber;    a high frequency power source that supplies high frequency electric power to the substrate holding means;    an evaporation source that is formed in the chamber, and that has a boat for holding an evaporation material used as the material of the thin film, and a heating means for heating the boat;    a gas supply means that supplies a gas for generating plasma into the chamber; and    a gas supply control means that controls the quantity of the gas supplied by the gas supply means into the chamber so that the quantity of gas supply is larger in the early stage of the thin film forming process than in the latter stage.    
     
     
         44 . The thin film forming apparatus according to  claim 43 , further comprising a vacuum level measuring means that measures the pressure in the chamber, while the gas supply control means controls the quantity of gas supplied by the gas supply means so that pressure in the chamber measured by the vacuum level measuring means is maintained at a predetermined level.  
     
     
         45 . The thin film forming apparatus according to  claim 44 , wherein the predetermined value of pressure is in a range from 1.0×10 −2  to 5.0×10 −2  Pa.  
     
     
         46 . The thin film forming apparatus according to  claim 43 , further comprising a DC voltage source that is connected between the substrate and the boat, with the boat serving as an anode.  
     
     
         47 . The thin film forming apparatus according to  claim 43 , wherein the chamber is electrically floated.  
     
     
         48 . The thin film forming apparatus according to  claim 43 , wherein the chamber comprises an electrically conductive material.  
     
     
         49 - 54 . (canceled)  
     
     
         55 . A thin film forming apparatus comprising: 
 a chamber that is electrically floated wherein the thin film forming process is carried out;    a substrate holding means that is made of an electrically conductive material and holds the substrate, over the surface of which a thin film is to be formed, in the chamber;    a high frequency power source that supplies high frequency electric power to the substrate holding means;    an evaporation source that is formed in the chamber, and that has a boat for holding an evaporation material used as the material of the thin film, and a heating means for heating the boat;    a gas supply means that supplies the gas for generating plasma into the chamber; and    a DC voltage source that is connected between the substrate and the boat, with the boat serving as an anode.    
     
     
         56 - 59 . (canceled)