The German Vacuum Society DVG e. V. is a registered non-profit association based in Kaiserslautern whose mission is to support scientific and technical disciplines in the field of vacuum-based sciences and technologies. This includes the fields of surface physics, in particular surface analysis, thin films, nanosciences and nanotechnologies, electronic materials and processes, plasma technology, vacuum physics and technology as well as the diverse areas of application of these disciplines. In 2020, the DVG once again hosted a Member Contact Day, this time organized jointly with the KIT in Karlsruhe. The motto this time was "Science meets industry + industry meets science". The event took place on February 10 and 11, 2020 at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT). The main topic was "Modern PVD/CVD coating technology - vacuum technology for research and industry in the interest of the environment". The aim of the member contact day is to expand the bridge between industry and science for vacuum-supported technologies and applications for mutual benefit and to fill it with life.
In the rooms of the Institute for Applied Materials - Applied Materials Physics (IAM-AWP), Prof. Dr. Sven Ulrich, Head of the Composites and Thin Films Department, welcomed the participants and opened the event. In addition to a tour of the institute, the event program also included several presentations, which are briefly reported on below. At the beginning, Dr. Ute Bergner (VACOM GmbH) provided information on "Energy and resource management at VACOM" and gave examples from operational practice. Her company does a great deal to protect the environment and conserve resources, including the use of high-performance photovoltaics, rainwater and waste heat, as well as the "green factory", where the health of human resources is a high priority. Digitalization in the context of Industry 4.0. not only enables the creation of self-monitoring processes and systems, but also the avoidance of resource-consuming experiments through simulation.
"Analytics for tribology" was the topic of the following presentation. Prof. Dr. Michael Kopnarski (IFOS) demonstrated that vacuum technology can be used not only for
analysis and characterization, but also for the processes involved in creating tribological systems. Thin layers and surfaces are important for setting the desired coefficients of friction in tribological systems, but the coefficient of friction as a system property is influenced by various factors (humidity, geometry, etc.). The lecturer demonstrated this using examples. Dr. Wolfgang Engelhart (Walter AG) reported on "Modern HIPIMS wear protection coatings". In the
comparison of different coating processes (arc, MS, HIPIMS), the high proportion of metal ions in HIPIMS is particularly decisive for high-quality coatings. For example, ductile, hard and almost defect-free Al2O3 coatings can be produced or fine-grained and smooth TiAlN multilayer coatings can be deposited for dry machining.
The "Characterization of high-power microwave plasma sources using plasma diagnostics" was the topic of the presentation by Dipl.-Phys. Tobias Radny (robeko GmbH & Co. KG). Using the Miro 200 CI high-power microwave source as an example, the lecturer demonstrated possibilities for characterization using plasma diagnostic methods (OES, Langmuir probes). For example, the condition of the sources can be determined, information on the dissociation of precursors can be obtained or the moisture status of the surfaces can be determined.
the moisture content of surfaces can be determined. Customer-specific module development for ultra-clean vacuum applications" also includes the verification and maintenance of particle-free surfaces, for example when shipping miniaturized parts and components worldwide. Conventional cleaning is often no longer sufficient here.
Dipl.-Ing. Thomas Kratzla (VAT Deutschland GmbH) provided some examples of this. Dr. Volker Sittinger (Fraunhofer IST) then gave a presentation on "Hot-wire CVD products for a sustainable way of life: Highly efficient photovoltaics and innovative water treatment". He presented the advantages of the process compared to plasma-assisted CVD and then went into the deposition of layers for SHJ solar cells. These silicon heterojunction (SHJ) solar cells are expected to achieve high efficiencies of over 20 % (PATOS project). Another example showed how hot-wire CVD can be used to produce diamond electrodes that enable autonomous water purification using solar power. Such electrodes can already be produced on a large scale using hot-wire CVD.
The "Holistic development of high-performance tools for machining difficult-to-cut materials (Inconel signum and CFRP diamond)" was the topic of the presentation by Dr. Stefan Sattel (Gühring KG). Among other things, the lecturer presented the Signum coating, a nanostructured coating produced by plasma PVD based on TiAlN with an oxidation resistance of up to 800 °C. Its ductility can be adjusted within wide limits by varying the aluminum content. Using the example of drilling or milling stack materials (titanium CFRP), it was then demonstrated how various processes (plasma, laser, PVD, CVD) enable high-quality processing of such CFRP hybrids. In the last contribution, Dr. Ralf Bandorf (Fraunhofer IST) presented "Current research topics and industrial examples of HIPIMS technology". In high-power impulse magnetron sputtering (HIPIMS), plasmas are generated with a high proportion of ionized layer-forming atoms compared to conventional magnetron sputtering.
ionized layer-forming atoms compared to conventional magnetron sputtering. This enables the deposition of coating systems with completely new and improved properties, e.g. in terms of density, hardness, roughness or refractive index.
Further improvements are possible through reactive operation and, if necessary, counter-pulsing; for example, the deposition rate can be doubled compared to DC-MS. The lecturer demonstrated this using the example of the optimization of TiN and CrN coatings. -Richard Suchentrunk-
