Multiple station vacuum deposition apparatus for texturing a substrate using a scanning beam

摘要

A stationary vacuum deposition machine for use in a method for processing substrates to make magnetic hard disks includes a series of stations and a transport. The series of stations includes an entrance station for receiving substrates into the machine and a predetermined station. The transport operates in a cycle with each cycle including a transport phase and a stationary phase. The transport causes all the substrates that are in the machine to be moved during the transport phase, and be temporarily held stationary during the stationary phase, such that during each stationary phase a predetermined one of the stations is occupied by one of the substrates while each of a plurality of others of the stations is occupied by a respective one of a plurality of others of the substrates. The machine further includes a plurality of vacuum deposition stations and a scanning beam generator. Each vacuum deposition station operates during each stationary phase such that each station causes a thin film to be deposited on a respective one of the substrates. The scanning beam generator directs a scanning beam at the substrate occupying the predetermined station while the substrate is held stationary to produce a textured pattern.