|
Fil-Tech’s Quality Quartz Crystals™
Fil-Tech manufactures Quality Quartz Crystals. We offer 4 different electrode materials for your material depositions. Each has specific characteristics and advantages as indicated.
Gold is the most widely known electrode material. It offers low contact resistance, high chemical stability, and is easy to deposit. Typically, gold crystals are used for low-stress metal depositions with gold, silver, and copper. With gold, it is possible to get frequency shifts of up to 1 MHz without adverse effects. However, gold electrodes are relatively inflexible, transmitting stresses from deposited films to the underlying quartz. Transmitted stress may result in frequency jumps and crystal instability. Fil-Tech’s QI8010
Longer Life Gold™ quartz crystals are exclusive to Fil-Tech and offer longer life than the standard gold crystals. Fil-Tech’s proprietary process for Longer Life Gold combines the low contact resistance and high chemical stability of gold crystals with the plastic yielding qualities of alloy crystals to produce a superior, Longer Life Gold crystal. Fil-Tech recommends our Longer Life Gold for anti-reflective coatings and semiconductor processes to dissipate the stresses caused by dielectric and high stress material depositions. Laboratory experiments have shown over 200% increase in crystal life with deposited magnesium fluoride on gold longer life. Fil-Tech’s QI8012
Alloy, an aluminum-silver composition, is the best electrode for high-stress material depositions, including; silicon monoxide, silicon dioxide, magnesium fluoride, and titanium dioxide. Deposited high-stress materials often cause erratic crystal performance produced by high tensile or compressive stresses. These stresses cause bending of the quartz and subsequent frequency shifts. Alloy dissipates the stresses of the deposited film by plastic yielding or flowing. Long before the compressive or tensile forces cause the crystal to bend, the electrode will “give,” dissipating the stress. This results in a more stable crystal with a longer period of steady, jump-free oscillation. Laboratory experiments have shown as much as a 400% increase in crystal life with deposited silicon dioxide on Alloy. Fil-Tech’s QI8008
Silver is an excellent all-around electrode material. Silver has a low contact resistance and exhibits some degree of plastic yielding. However, Silver tends to tarnish in the presence of atmospheric sulfides. Tarnish will increase contact resistance and decrease the adherence of films deposited on the crystal. Fil-Tech’s QI8009
Fil-Tech has Technical Bulletins regarding selection fundamentals and proper handling of our Quality Quartz Crystals. Call us at 800-743-1743 or email sales@filtech.com for Technical Bulletins in English, Chinese Simplified, Chinese Traditional or Korean.
|
