What are the application areas of vacuum coating CVD electric furnace?

Vacuum coating CVD (chemical vapor deposition) electric furnace achieves high-precision thin film deposition through high-temperature vacuum environment, and its application fields widely cover high-tech industries and emerging industries. The following are its core application areas and specific case analysis:

1. Semiconductors and Integrated Circuits
crystalline silicon solar cell
Function: Deposition of silicon nitride (SiN ₓ) anti reflection film to improve light absorption efficiency.
Advantages: Vacuum environment avoids oxidation of silicon hydride (SiH ₄), uniform film, and improved battery conversion efficiency.
Case: Longi Green Energy’s PERC cells prepared by CVD electric furnace have high mass production efficiency.
High-k gate dielectric layer
Function: Deposition of HfO ₂, ZrO ₂ and other thin films to replace traditional SiO ₂ and reduce leakage current.
Advantages: CVD electric furnaces can accurately control the thickness of thin films (up to atomic level) to meet process requirements.
Case: TSMC 5nm chip adopts ALD-CVD combined process, which shortens the equivalent oxide layer thickness (EOT) of the gate dielectric layer.
3D NAND flash memory
Function: Deposition of silicon carbide (SiC) or silicon nitride (Si ∝ N ₄) as an etching stop layer.
Advantages: Vacuum environment reduces impurity doping and improves the etching resistance of thin films.
Case: In the 176 layer stacked structure of Samsung V-NAND, the thickness uniformity of the Si ∝ N ₄ layer deposited by CVD is good.

2. Optics and Optoelectronics
Anti reflective film/reflective film
Function: Deposition of magnesium fluoride (MgF ₂) or titanium dioxide (TiO ₂) thin films on the surface of optical lenses.
Advantages: Vacuum environment avoids hydrolysis reaction, high film transmittance.
Case: Zeiss optical lenses use MgF ₂ anti reflective film deposited by CVD, which reduces light loss.
Laser crystal coating
Function: Deposition of aluminum oxide (Al ₂ O3) protective film for Nd: YAG crystals to prevent moisture erosion.
Advantages: CVD electric furnace can achieve uniform coating and prolong crystal life.
Case: The Trumpf laser uses CVD coated crystals, which improves the stability of output power.
Flexible Display
Function: Deposition of indium tin oxide (ITO) transparent conductive film on polyimide (PI) substrate.
Advantage: Low temperature CVD process (<300 ℃) avoids PI substrate deformation.
Case: The Samsung Fold series folding screen uses CVD-ITO film, which has a long bending life.

3. Aerospace and Energy
Thermal Barrier Coating (TBC)
Function: Deposition of yttria stabilized zirconia (YSZ) coating on the surface of turbine blades.
Advantages: Vacuum environment reduces coating porosity, can withstand high temperatures of 1600 ℃, and improves insulation efficiency.
Case: The GE Aviation LEAP engine adopts CVD-TBC coating, which improves fuel efficiency.
Wear resistant coating
Function: Deposition of diamond-like carbon (DLC) film to reduce the friction coefficient of aviation bearings.
Advantages: CVD electric furnace can regulate the sp ³/sp ² hybrid bond ratio, resulting in high film hardness.
Case: Rolls Royce engine bearings are coated with DLC, which extends their lifespan.
Nuclear fuel cladding
Function: Deposition of silicon carbide (SiC) coating on the surface of zirconium alloy to prevent nuclear fuel leakage.
Advantages: CVD process achieves 10 μ m level dense coating, improving corrosion resistance.
Case: Westinghouse Electric AP1000 nuclear reactor adopts CVD SiC cladding, which improves the safety factor.

4. Medical Devices and Bioengineering
antimicrobial coating
Function: Deposition of silver (Ag) or copper (Cu) thin film on the surface of orthopedic implants.
Advantages: Vacuum environment avoids oxidation, high antibacterial rate, and no cytotoxicity.
Case: Johnson&Johnson DePuy Synthes joint implant uses CVD Ag coating to reduce infection rate.
bioactive coating
Function: Deposition of hydroxyapatite (HA) film to promote bone cell adhesion.
Advantages: CVD electric furnace can achieve nanoscale HA crystal growth and improve bone bonding strength.
Case: Stryker spinal fusion device adopts CVD-HA coating, which shortens the postoperative healing time.
Drug sustained-release carrier
Function: Deposition of porous silica (SiO ₂) film on the surface of medical catheters, loaded with antibiotics.
Advantages: CVD process controls pore size (50-200nm) to achieve drug sustained release.
Case: Boston Scientific drug-eluting stents use CVD SiO ₂ coating to reduce restenosis rate.

5. Expanding into emerging fields
quantum computing
Function: Deposition of superconducting titanium nitride (TiN) thin film on silicon substrate to construct quantum bits.
Advantages: CVD electric furnace can achieve single atomic layer accuracy and low film resistivity.
Case: IBM quantum computer uses CVD TiN thin film with quantum coherence time.
flexible electronics
Function: Deposition of zinc oxide (ZnO) film on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate.
Advantages: Low temperature CVD process (<150 ℃) avoids PET deformation and has high film transmittance.
Case: LG flexible display screen uses CVD ZnO film, with a smaller bending radius.
Hydrogen energy storage
Function: Deposition of palladium (Pd) film on the surface of carbon nanotubes to enhance hydrogen storage capacity.
Advantages: CVD electric furnace can achieve uniform coverage of Pd film and high hydrogen storage density.
Case: The Toyota Mirai fuel cell vehicle uses CVD Pd coated hydrogen storage tanks, which increases the range.

6. Technological Trends and Challenges
Trend:
Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD) Integration: Achieving single atomic layer accuracy through alternating pulse gases to meet chip requirements.
Plasma enhanced CVD (PECVD): Utilizing plasma to reduce deposition temperature (<200 ℃) and expand the application of flexible substrates.
Summary: Vacuum coated CVD electric furnaces have become the core equipment of high-tech industries, with applications extending from traditional semiconductors and optics to cutting-edge fields such as quantum computing and hydrogen energy storage. In the future, with the integration of technologies such as ALD-CVD and PECVD, their application boundaries will continue to expand, promoting industrial upgrading.