High throughput surface treatment on coiled flexible substrates

Abstract

One or more substrates may be coiled into one or more coils in such a way that adjacent turns of the coils do not touch one another. The one or more coiled substrates are placed in a treatment chamber where substantially an entire surface of the one or more coiled substrates may be treated with a surface treatment process. One or more spacers may be placed between adjacent layers of the coiled substrate before a full turn of the substrate has been coiled around a carousel.

1 . A method for treating a substrate surface, comprising the steps of: 
 coiling one or more substrates into one or more coils in such a way that adjacent turns of the coils do not touch one another;    placing the one or more coiled substrates in a treatment chamber; and    in the treatment chamber, treating substantially an entire surface of the one or more coiled substrates with a surface treatment process.    
     
     
         2 - 5 . (canceled)  
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the surface treatment process includes anodization.  
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the surface treatment process includes drying.  
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the surface treatment process includes annealing.  
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the surface treatment process includes exposure to reactive gas or vapor.  
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9  wherein the exposure to reactive gas or vapor includes selenization.  
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1  where the surface treatment includes anodization.  
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 1  where the surface treatment includes electrodeposition.  
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 1  where the surface treatment includes electropolishing.  
     
     
         14 - 23 . (canceled)  
     
     
         24 . A substrate surface treatment system, comprising: 
 a surface treatment chamber;    a carousel adapted to receive a flexible substrate material as a coil, the carousel being sized to be received within the chamber with the substrate material coiled around the carousel in one or more turns;    a winding mechanism configured to coil the substrate material about the carousel to form a coiled substrate; and    one or more spacers, the spacers being configured to space apart adjacent turns of the coiled substrate in such a way that the adjacent turns of the coiled substrate do not touch one another; and    a mechanism adapted to place one or more of the spacers between adjacent layers of the coiled substrate before the winding mechanism winds a full turn of the substrate material about the carousel.    
     
     
         25 . The system of claim  22 , further comprising one or more sources of reactant gas coupled to the chamber, the reactant gas being of a type suitable for performing atomic layer deposition.  
     
     
         26 . The system of claim  22 , wherein the chamber is an anodization chamber.  
     
     
         27 . The system of claim  22 , wherein the carousel is in the shape of a polygonal cylinder.  
     
     
         28 . The system of  claim 25  wherein the carousel is in the shape of a hexagonal cylinder.  
     
     
         29 . The system of claim  22  wherein the spacers can be secured in place with respect to the carousel.  
     
     
         30 . The system of claim  22  wherein the spacers can stack on top of one another.  
     
     
         31 . The system of claim  22 , wherein the spacers include one or more spacer tapes.  
     
     
         32 . The system of  claim 29  wherein the spacer tapes run substantially parallel to a length of the substrate.  
     
     
         33 . The system of  claim 29  wherein at least one spacer tapes is located proximate a side of the substrate.  
     
     
         34 . An apparatus for treating a substrate surface, comprising: 
 means for coiling one or more substrates into one or more coils in such a way that adjacent turns of the coils do not touch one another;    treatment chamber means; and    means for treating in the treatment chamber substantially an entire surface of the one or more coiled substrates with a surface treatment process,    wherein the surface treatment process includes one or more atomic layer deposition (ALD) reactions.