Durable 3d geometry conformal anti-reflection coating

Abstract

Methods and systems for depositing a thin film are disclosed. The methods and systems can be used to deposit a film having a uniform thickness on a substrate surface that has a non-planar three-dimensional geometry, such as a curved surface. The methods involve the use of a deposition source that has a shape in accordance with the non-planar three-dimensional geometry of the substrate surface. In some embodiments, multiple layers of films are deposited onto each other forming multi-layered coatings. In some embodiments, the multi-layered coatings are antireflective (AR) coatings for windows or lenses.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of depositing a film on a curved surface of a substrate, the method comprising:
 positioning the curved surface with respect to a source of a deposition system, wherein the source includes an effective surface having a curved shape in accordance with the curved surface of the substrate; and   causing the source to emit a plurality of particles such that the plurality of particles become deposited on the curved surface as the film, wherein the curved shape of the effective surface is associated with a thickness uniformity of the film.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the deposition system is a sputter deposition system and the source is a sputter target, wherein causing the source to emit the plurality of particles comprises directing a sputter gas at the sputter target such that the plurality of particles are sputtered from the sputter target. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the deposition system is a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) system and the source is a hollow cathode source, wherein causing the source to emit the plurality of particles comprises:
 supplying a reaction gas to the hollow cathode source, and   causing the hollow cathode source to discharge a plasma having ions and/or other reactive chemical species corresponding to the plurality of particles.   
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , wherein the deposition system includes one or more hollow cathode sources, each hollow cathode source including an effective surface having a curved shape in accordance with different portions of the curved surface of the substrate. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , wherein each of the hollow cathode sources has an effective surface that is a distance d from curved surface of the substrate, wherein the distance d is substantially the same for each hollow cathode source. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the film is an antireflective coating and comprises one or more of Si 3 N 4 , SiO 2 , NB 2 O 5 , TiO 2  and TaO 2 . 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the particles are a first type of particles and the film is a first film, wherein the method further comprises:
 after causing the source to emit the plurality of the first type of particles, causing the source to emit a plurality of a second type of particles, different than the first type of particles, such that the plurality of the second type of particles become deposited on the first film as a second film.   
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising:
 translating the substrate relative to the source during a deposition process such that the film is deposited on different regions of the curved surface at a time.   
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the substrate is a first substrate, the film is a first film, and the source is a first source, the method further comprising:
 causing a second source to emit a second plurality of particles such that the second plurality of particles become deposited on a curved surface of a second substrate as a second film causing.   
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9 , wherein the second film is deposited substantially simultaneously with depositing the first film. 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the film is substantially transparent and the curved surface is a window or a lens of an electronic device. 
     
     
         12 . A deposition system for depositing a film on a surface of a substrate, the surface characterized as having a non-planar shape, the deposition system comprising:
 a source that includes an effective surface configured to emit a plurality of particles, wherein the effective surface has a non-planar shape in accordance with the non-planar shape of the surface of the substrate; and   a support configured to position the substrate with respect to the source such that the plurality of particles emitted from the source deposit as the film on the surface of the substrate, wherein the non-planar shape of the effective surface is associated with a thickness uniformity of the film.   
     
     
         13 . The deposition system of  claim 12 , wherein the effective surface has a curved shape in accordance with a curved shape of the surface of the substrate. 
     
     
         14 . The deposition system of  claim 12 , wherein the deposition system is a plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) system and the source is a hollow cathode source. 
     
     
         15 . The deposition system of  claim 12 , wherein the deposition system is a sputter deposition system. 
     
     
         16 . The deposition system of  claim 12 , wherein the support includes a translation system configured to translate the substrate relative to the source during a deposition process. 
     
     
         17 . The deposition system of  claim 16 , wherein the translation system positions different regions of the surface of the substrate sufficiently proximate the source to deposit the film thereon. 
     
     
         18 . The deposition system of  claim 17 , wherein the translation system is configured to translate the substrate relative to the source during a second deposition process to deposit a second film on the film after a first deposition process is complete. 
     
     
         19 . A plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) apparatus for depositing a film on a curved surface of a substrate, the PECVD apparatus comprising:
 a hollow cathode source that includes an effective surface configured to emit a plurality of ions, wherein the effective surface has a curved shape in accordance with a curved shape of the curved surface of the substrate; and   a support configured to position the substrate with respect to the hollow cathode source such that the plurality of ions emitted from the source deposit as the film on the curved surface of the substrate, wherein the curved shape of the effective surface is associated with a thickness uniformity of the film.   
     
     
         20 . The PECVD apparatus of  claim 19 , wherein the support includes a translational mechanism that translates the substrate with respect to the hollow cathode source during a deposition process.