Process simulation of reactive DC magnetron sputtering for thin film deposition of niobium-titanium nitride

A process simulation for depositions of Niobium-Titanium Nitride (NbTiN) films with a reactive magnetron sputtering system was demonstrated. In the modeling, V_Ar-dependent sputtering yields with quasi target erosion profile were newly incorporated for the precise optimization of the sputtering conditions. The numerical results were found to agree well with the experimental data. We present the dependence of the film resistivity and T_c on the chemical composition. It was also confirmed by the simulation that ΔV can be a good indicator to control the chemical compositions for the fabrications of high T_c films. In addition, the resistivity and stress were found to deeply relate to the total process pressure and residual N₂ gas in the plasma as suggested in the atomic peening model. Preliminary results suggest that the process simulation has a potential of the useful tool to control the properties of superconducting films.