Protective enclosure for an ion gun, device for depositing materials through vacuum evaporation comprising such a protective enclosure and method for depositing materials

1. A device for depositing materials through vacuum evaporation comprising:

a treating chamber having a substrate holder;

an ion gun having an outlet configured to direct an ion beam towards the substrate holder;

a protective enclosure for the ion gun comprising:

at least one curved side wall surrounding the ion gun;

an open upper end defining an opening; and

a longitudinal axis;

where the side wall forms a truncated tube such that:

the opening of the open upper end of the protective enclosure defines an incline relative to the longitudinal axis; and

the open upper end has an upper section and a lower section such that at least a portion of the opening is disposed at a non-perpendicular angle relative to the longitudinal axis; and

an innermost surface of the side wall is parallel to the longitudinal axis.

2. The device of claim 1 , wherein the incline of the protective enclosure is curved inwardly relative to the open upper end of the protective enclosure.

3. The device of claim 1 , wherein the incline of the protective enclosure comprises:

a substantially planar section substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the protective enclosure; and

a curved section protruding away from the substantially planar section and curved inwardly relative to the open upper end of the protective enclosure;

where the substantially planar section and the curved section are joined to form an angle.

4. The device of claim 1 , wherein the protective enclosure comprises a base defining a hole through which the ion gun can pass.

5. The device of claim 1 , where:

the treating chamber is defined at least by side walls;

the ion gun is positioned close to one of the side walls of the treating chamber; and

the device comprises:

at least one material evaporation source; and

a gun cover that is movable between an open position and a close position in which the gun cover covers the ion gun outlet.

6. The device of claim 5 , wherein the gun cover is rotatably movable between the close position and the open position.

7. The device of claim 5 , wherein the incline of the protective enclosure is curved inwardly relative to the open upper end of the protective enclosure.

8. The device of claim 5 , wherein the incline of the protective enclosure comprises:

a substantially planar section substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the protective enclosure; and

a curved section protruding away from the substantially planar section and curved inwardly relative to the open upper end of the protective enclosure;

where the substantially planar section and the curved section are joined to form an angle.

9. The device of claim 5 , wherein the protective enclosure comprises a base defining a hole through which the ion gun can pass during use.

10. The device of claim 5 , wherein:

the side wall of the protective enclosure extends beyond the ion gun; and

the incline of the protective enclosure is configured to allow the ion beam to reach the substrate holder during use.

11. The device of claim 5 , further comprising:

an electron gun configured to provide electrons to the at least one material evaporation source to generate an evaporated material beam directed towards the substrate holder;

where the incline of the protective enclosure configured to allow both the ion beam and the evaporated material beam to reach the substrate holder.

12. The device of claim 5 , wherein the gun cover is positioned inside of the protective enclosure and the side wall of the protective enclosure extends beyond the gun cover.

13. The device of claim 5 , wherein:

the side wall of the protective enclosure comprises an elongated slot through which the gun cover can pass when moving between the close position and the open position; and

the gun cover is movable in a plane that is substantially perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the protective enclosure.

14. The device of claim 5 , wherein the gun cover is a flat disk having a size sufficient for covering up the ion gun outlet.

15. The device of claim 5 , wherein the protective enclosure acts as a mask for reducing a solid angle of the ion cone emitted towards the substrate holder and for limiting ion emission towards the treating chamber side walls during use.

16. A method for depositing materials onto a substrate through vacuum evaporation comprising:

obtaining a device for depositing materials through vacuum evaporation comprising:

a treating chamber having a substrate holder;

an ion gun having an outlet configured to direct an ion beam towards the substrate holder;

a protective enclosure for the ion gun comprising:

at least one curved side wall surrounding the ion gun;

an open upper end defining an opening; and

a longitudinal axis;

where the sidewall forms a truncated tube such that:

the opening of the open upper end of the protective enclosure defines an incline relative to the longitudinal axis; and

the open upper end has an upper section and a lower section such that at least a portion of the opening is disposed at a non-perpendicular angle relative to the longitudinal axis; and

using the device to evaporate a material and deposit it onto the substrate.

17. A device for depositing materials through vacuum evaporation comprising:

an ion gun having an outlet configured to emit an ion cone having an apex angle;

a protective enclosure for the ion gun comprising:

at least one side wall surrounding the ion gun;

an open upper end defining an opening; and

a longitudinal axis;

where the side wall forms a truncated tube such that:

the opening of the open upper end of the protective enclosure defines an incline relative to the longitudinal axis;

the open upper end has an upper section and a lower section such that at least a portion of the opening is disposed at a non-perpendicular angle relative to the longitudinal axis; and

where the protective enclosure is configured to reduce the apex angle of the ion cone.