Influence of Inter-Electrode Distance, Gas Mixing, Magnetic Field and Cathode Material on Breakdown Voltage of Lab-Made DC Magnetron Sputtering Device

Abstract

In this paper, the effect of inter-electrode distance, gas mixing, magnetic field and cathode materials on breakdown voltage in DC glow discharge of argon and argon-oxygen plasma is presented. The results showed an increased breakdown voltage when inter-electrode distance and oxygen percentage in (Ar∕O2) gas mixture increased. At lower pressure, the breakdown voltage decreases by increasing the magnetic field, while at higher pressure, the breakdown voltage becomes less sensitive to the magnetic field. Moreover, the lower breakdown voltages are associated with smaller work function of the cathode material.