With Dynamic Reverse Pulsing (DRP), we can increase throughput while lowering the thermal stress of coating, both of which are critical to the quality and cost of the end product. Usually you must play in one dimension or the other: increasing the throughout while increasing thermal stress, or lower stress resulting in a lower throughput, a revolutionary development. Additionally, this power delivery system can be incorporated into existing OR new machines – whereas many new solutions are only compatible with new machines. Thus, DRP is applicable and able to improve any relevant machine.
The elements of this solution compare to a classic dual-magnetron machine, which is used for many of these processes, but applies energy like a classic DC machine with higher throughput. Thus, DRP helps achieve the desired effects of a DC machine while keeping the benefits and accessibility of a dual-magnetron machine, as DC can’t be applied to many coating materials due to its high heat. Only DRP has proven to increase throughput while lowering heat, which is crucial to many sensitive coating materials.
If DRP is applied at the same power setpoint as the baseline AC (50kw, for example), the throughput will be nearly doubled at 100kw. Still, the frequency of kHz is actually reduced from the baseline from 40kHz to 30 kHz. Overall, the deposition rate is increased 2.3 times. For less heat sensitive substrates, you can significantly increase the DDR without increasing cathode currents. Similarly, at the same power setpoint in lower instances (4kw, for example), the power produced by the AC machine is doubled when DRP is utilized. Despite this, the heat load is actually reduced from 310 degrees Celsius to 230 degrees Celsius. The resulting thickness is nearly doubled as well, increasing from 230A to 380A. DRP particularly opens up the applications where plastic and metal components and parts are mixed. For example, in a cell phone, this applies to the two slits made to look like the rest of the phone case. Whereas the rest of the case is metal, this part is plastic so antennas inside the phone are given enough transmission to receive signal. The coating process for metal would be too hot, so DRP is succeeding as a solution to mix together these sensitive materials seamlessly and efficiently. Since DRP can be applied to existing machines, the potential improvement of coating machines via implementing DRP will be a hot topic in manufacturing for years to come, as it comes from its internationally trusted leader, Advanced Energy.
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