When you need a thin film of materials, the process can be surprisingly difficult depending on what you want to manufacture. For instance, if you wanted to coat a plastic screw in metals. You couldn’t melt the metal and apply it to the screw, you’d need another method to bond the metal to the plastic. A thin film vacuum coating would allow you to bond the two materials under specific temperatures. There are other advantages to using this technique too.
Temperature Control
One of the biggest advantages to using a system that applies thin film vacuum coating is the ability to control temperature. In the example above, the screw is common for lots of items. Optic lenses, like the kind used in cars or eye glasses, might melt or crack under the extreme temperatures it would take to break the chemicals down into gas. Melting and pouring the material over the glass will leave a coating that is thick and uneven, plus the drying process may create imperfections.
Finish
The vacuum chamber allows the molecules to come to rest on the substrate in an even finish, which frees the surface from physical defects like bumps or bubbles. This is especially important anodizing metal, where the smoothness of the finish is part of the selling point. The finish can also make a difference when it comes to thickness. Thin film means microns in thickness, which requires precision and isn’t something you can fib. Imagine what would happen if a metalized screw were too thick. An entire schematic might be missing a crucial component thanks to a bad finish.
Bio: Denton Vacuum, LLC manufactures a sputter coater used in a variety of advanced manufacturing industries.