CH715599B1 - Multilayer deposition reactor. - Google Patents

Abstract

In the present invention, a reactor (1) is provided for simultaneously coating a plurality of individual substrates (3) with a multilayer coating comprising at least one organic layer and at least one inorganic layer. The reactor (1) comprises a single deposition chamber in which first deposition means and second deposition means are arranged to deposit, during operation of the reactor (1), said at least one organic layer and said at least one inorganic respectively. The reactor (1) further comprises support means (2) for the individual substrates (3), said support means (2) being configured to turn over each individual substrate (3) during the deposition of said organic layers and said inorganic layers .

Description

Field of the invention

The present invention relates to the field of simultaneous deposition of multilayer coatings on a plurality of three-dimensional objects. More specifically, the invention relates to a reactor configured to deposit multilayer coatings comprising organic and inorganic layers. The reactor includes rotating/mixing/flipping means which facilitate uniform deposition of the multilayer coating on the plurality of three-dimensional objects.

Background of the invention

[0002] The deposition of organic and inorganic layers is widely used as a protective coating for various micromechanical and electronic components.

[0003] A particularly interesting organic layer consists of para-xylylene polymers, also called parylene. Parylene is used as a thin film coating due to its ability to exhibit highly desirable physical and electrical properties. As the parylene coatings are applied in thin layers by chemical vapor deposition, they allow a very high coverage capacity of the steps. Additionally, the parylene deposition process is more efficient when a relatively large number of substrates are simultaneously coated.

[0004] However, conventional parylene deposition chambers are generally deficient in that a large number of particularly small substrates are placed in the chambers so that they may touch each other and/or parts of mechanical parts of the reactor, resulting in missing layers on these areas. The problem is even more pronounced in the case of other deposits such as oxide layers on objects. In this case, at least one surface is, in most cases, not coated at all and some surfaces may be only partially coated. Uniform coating of all surfaces of three-dimensionally shaped objects is a challenge for both oxide coatings and parylene coatings. This is why solutions have been proposed for turning the substrates by means of a drum or a vibrating bowl, so as to obtain uniform coatings on all the three-dimensional objects in a single pass through this type of deposit. Finally, the flipping concept avoids rotating the substrates and performing an additional deposition step to coat all surfaces of the three-dimensional objects in their entirety.

[0005] A parylene reactor configured to deposit parylene and comprising a drum is described in document PCT/US97/23911. Although the system described in document PCT/US97/23911 makes it possible to deposit uniform layers of parylene on a large number of substrates, it is limited by the fact that the flipping process can damage the deposited coatings.

[0006] The application of a protective coating such as parylene alone on substrates does not guarantee that the barrier performance of the coating will be effective. This is why additional coatings, such as inorganic coatings, must be inserted.

[0007] The application of inorganic coatings, also called passivation layers, such as silicon oxides (SiOx) on organic coatings such as parylene coatings, so as to obtain a multilayer coating, would considerably improve the properties of the coating. Document WO2013/071138 describes a method for depositing a passivation layer of SiOx on medical components. However, the application of such an inorganic coating on an organic coating requires a second separate reactor to deposit this passivation layer, which makes the process expensive and time consuming because substrates coated with an organic coating such as parylene must be manipulated and transferred to a second reactor; the realization of multiple layers requires applying a multi-chamber approach involving at least two reactors. During sample transfer, the surface can also be polluted and therefore the adhesion and interface properties and ultimately the quality between the two coatings can be reduced. Furthermore, there is a risk that the coated components will be damaged during transfer between different reactors.

The same reasoning can be made in the case where the first protective layer of a component is an inorganic layer on which an organic layer must be produced.

[0009] Furthermore, it would become very complicated, time-consuming and costly to produce multilayers comprising more than one of said organic and inorganic layers, for example a multilayer comprising 3 different layers such as a first organic layer, a second inorganic layer deposited thereon, and a third organic layer made on said second inorganic layer. For some applications, multiple stacks of organic/inorganic layers are required to fully protect a component in an integral and hermetic manner.

[0010] In the case of a large number of small components, as is the case in watchmaking or in medical devices, the process and handling, which includes the compulsory turning of the samples after the deposition of the first layer, become even more complex and the likelihood of damage from handling substrates is increased.

[0011] None of the reactors or methods available makes it possible to cost-effectively produce multi-layer coatings comprising an organic and inorganic sub-layer on the surfaces of a large number of small components.

[0012] It is therefore necessary to have an improved deposition reactor which solves this problem.

Summary of the invention

[0013] The object of the invention is to provide an improved reactor which makes it possible to solve the drawbacks of the reactors and of the methods of the prior art.

Consequently, the present invention relates to a reactor making it possible to simultaneously coat a plurality of individual substrates with a multilayer coating comprising at least one organic layer and at least one inorganic layer.

More specifically, a reactor is provided for simultaneously coating a plurality of individual substrates with a multilayer coating comprising at least one organic layer and at least one inorganic layer.

The reactor of the invention comprises a single deposition chamber in which first deposition means and second deposition means are arranged to deposit, during operation of the reactor, said at least one organic layer and said at least one inorganic layer respectively.

[0017] Said reactor further comprising support means for the individual substrates, said support means being configured to turn over each individual substrate during the deposition of said organic layers and said inorganic layers.

[0018] In one embodiment, said supporting means comprises one of the following elements: vibrating support, a vibrating feeding bowl, a mixing means or an overturning means or a combination thereof.

In one embodiment, said first deposition means are configured to perform, during reactor operation, a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and/or plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) process.

In one embodiment, said second deposition means are configured to perform, during operation of the reactor, any of the atomic layer deposition (ALD) processes, by evaporation or sputtering.

In one embodiment, said at least one organic coating is a layer of parylene.

In one embodiment, said at least one inorganic coating is a layer selected from the group consisting of metals, metal oxides, metal nitrides, metal carbides, metal oxynitrides, metal oxyborides, semiconductors, semiconductor oxides, semiconductor nitrides, semiconductor carbides, semiconductor oxynitrides and combinations thereof.

[0023] In one embodiment, the second deposition means are configured to carry out a PECVD process and comprise at least one electrode placed at a distance between 0 mm, defined as direct contact, direct contact) and 40 cm from the support means .

[0024] In one embodiment, said support means comprises an upturn cylinder inside which said plurality of substrates can be contained.

In one embodiment, said cylinder comprises at least a part made of an electrically non-conductive dielectric material.

[0026] In one embodiment, the plasmas for the PECVD process are generated by a coil supplied with RF which leads to an inductive type plasma.

In one embodiment, an electrical ground electrode is arranged inside said cylinder, said cylinder being made at least partially of an electrically conductive material which is said electrode.

In one embodiment, an electrically conductive electrode is disposed inside said cylinder, said cylinder being made at least partially of an electrically conductive material which is said electrical ground electrode.

In one embodiment, said support means are disposed in a chamber comprising a first array of grounded electrodes and a second array of electrically powered electrodes, said first array and said second array of electrodes being arranged in a cylindrical configuration and in which the various electrodes are arranged substantially parallel.

In one embodiment, said first and second arrays of electrodes are arranged on a drum made of a non-conductive dielectric material, preferably quartz, or glass.

In one embodiment, said support means comprises a star-shaped electrode inside said turning means.

In one embodiment, said turning means comprises at least one set of steps.

[0033] In one embodiment, at least one electric coil arranged inside and/or outside said support means.

In one embodiment, said support means comprise at least one vibrating feed bowl.

In one embodiment, the reactor comprises at least one electric coil arranged inside and/or outside said support means, said electric coil being supplied with radio-frequency (RF) to generate a plasma at the inside said cylinder.

Brief description of the drawings

Additional details of the invention will appear more clearly on reading the following description with reference to the appended figures: Figure 1 illustrates a cross section of a reactor of the invention; Figure 2 shows a cross section of a drum of cylindrical shape; Figure 3 shows a side cross-section of a cylindrical drum comprising a central electrical ground; Figure 4 shows a side cross section of a cylindrical drum whose surface is connected to an electrical ground; Figure 5 shows a side cross-section of a cylindrical drum arranged close to an outer electrode and comprising an inner electrical ground; Figure 6 shows a side cross-section of a cylindrical drum arranged close to an outer electrode connected to an electrical ground and comprising an inner electrical conductor; Figure 7 shows a side cross-section of a drum comprising a stepped arrangement of drums; Figure 8 shows a side view of part of a chamber comprising a first and a second array of electrodes which are arranged in a substantially cylindrical configuration and in which the different electrodes are arranged substantially parallel; Figure 9 shows a view in the direction of the axis of rotation of part of a chamber comprising a first and a second array of electrodes which are arranged substantially parallel; Figure 10 shows a side view of a support arrangement comprising oscillation means and an arrangement of RF electrodes; Figure 11 shows a side view of a support arrangement including vibration means; Figure 12 shows a top view of a star-shaped support arrangement; Figure 13 shows a top view of a support arrangement comprising a plurality of recessed cylindrical structures which are configured to effect, during the same deposition process, the deposition of different types of samples; Figures 14 a-c illustrate exemplary coating stacks as made with the reactor of the invention.

Description of the invention

The present invention will be described with respect to particular embodiments and with reference to certain drawings, but the invention is not limited thereto. The drawings described are only schematic and not limiting. In the drawings, the size of some elements may be exaggerated and not drawn to scale for illustration purposes. Dimensions and relative dimensions do not correspond to actual reductions in the practice of the invention.

[0038] It should be noted that the term "comprising" in the description and the claims should not be interpreted as being limited to the means listed below, that is to say that it does not exclude other elements.

[0039] Reference to "an embodiment" throughout the specification means that a particular feature, structure or character described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. Thus, the expressions "in an embodiment" or "in a variant", which appear in various places in the description, do not necessarily all refer to the same embodiment, but to several. Further, the features, structures or features may be combined in any suitable manner, as would be apparent to those skilled in the art from this disclosure, in one or more embodiment(s). Likewise, various features of the invention are sometimes grouped together in a single embodiment, figure or description, in order to make the disclosure more readable and to improve the understanding of one or more of the various inventive aspects. Further, while some embodiments described below include some features included in other embodiments, but not others, combinations of features from different embodiments are intended to be within the scope of the invention, and from different embodiments. For example, all of the claimed embodiments may be used in any combination. It is also understood that the invention may be practiced without some of the many specific details set forth. In other cases, not all the structures are shown in detail so as not to obscure the understanding of the description and/or the figures. The term "flipping" is also defined here broadly as a repositioning of an object in space relative to the wall of a reactor or relative to the direction of gravity and includes any movement of an object that gives a new position in space and also includes rotational movements, lateral displacement of position, vibrations, oscillations by „vibrating bowl“ or upward or downward or lateral movements or a combination of these -this. In some cases, the overturning motion can produce a temporal deformation of the overturned object, as can occur in the case of thin membranes. In this document, the terms "up" and "down" refer to the direction of gravitation. For example, a downturning object is broadly defined as an object on which is subjected at least one component of motion in the direction of local gravitation. The term "lateral direction" is defined as a direction perpendicular to the direction of gravity. In the figures, the reversal is achieved by a movement which is illustrated by an arrow and a rotation symbol θ, which is only illustrative because the reversal can be achieved by a different movement such as a linear or vibratory movement or any combination of moves.

It is understood that in all embodiments of the invention, the turning system or any component of the reactor can have any orientation with respect to the direction of gravity.

The present invention further comprises the following embodiments.

[0042] FIG. 1 illustrates an embodiment of the reactor 1 of the invention. Reactor 1 is configured to simultaneously coat a plurality of individual substrates 3 with a multilayer coating 30 comprising at least one organic layer 32 and at least one inorganic layer 34.

The reactor 1 of the invention comprises a single deposition chamber in which first deposition means and second deposition means are arranged to deposit, during operation of the reactor 1, said at least one organic layer 32 and said at least one inorganic layer 34. As explained in more detail, at least one organic layer 32 and at least one inorganic layer 34 can be deposited in any order. Moreover, as explained below, each of these organic layers 32 and/or inorganic layers 34 can be a stack of different layers.

[0044] The reactor 1 further comprises support means 2 for the individual substrates 3, said support means 2 are configured to ensure that, during operation of the reactor, each individual substrate 3 turns over during the deposition of said layers organic layers 32 and said inorganic layers 34.

In a preferred arrangement shown in Fig.1, feed gas injection means are provided on one side of the reactor. The feed gas injection means includes the feed gases for CVD deposition and the feed gases for PECVD deposition. Variants of the one-sided reactor include vacuum connection means so that the reactor chamber can be connected to a vacuum pump. These vacuum connection means may comprise at least one opening connected to suitable vacuum pipes. The connection of a one-chamber reactor to a vacuum pump is well known to the skilled person and is not described in further detail here.

[0046] In all the embodiments, the feed gases can be supplied to the plasma chamber in different ways and depending on the process, by different systems, preferably via these support means.

In one embodiment, said first deposition means are configured to perform, during operation of reactor 1, a CVD deposition process.

In another embodiment, said second deposition means 2 are configured to carry out, during the operation of the reactor 1, any one of the following processes: PECVD, ALD, deposition by sputtering, evaporation or CVD.

In some embodiments, at least one inorganic coating 34 is a layer selected from, but not limited to, the group consisting of metals, metal oxides, metal nitrides, metal carbides, metal oxynitrides, metal oxyborides, semimetals (i.e. semiconductors), semimetallic oxides, semimetallic nitrides, semimetallic carbides, semimetallic oxynitrides, and combinations thereof this.

The reactor can also be configured to carry out several and/or different PECVD and CVD deposition sequences. For example, the reactor 1 can be used to produce a number N of PECVD layers and a number M of CVD layers, the numbers N and M preferably being between 3 and 10. The layers deposited can be alternating layers of PECVD layers and CVD, as shown in Figs 14a-c.

[0051] An exemplary stack comprising 3 alternating layers comprises: a first CVD layer made of parylene; a second PECVD layer consisting of SiOx; a third CVD layer consisting of another layer of parylene or any other type of organic layer.

In a preferred embodiment said at least one organic coating 32 is a layer of parylene.

In embodiments, said at least one inorganic coating 34 is a layer selected from the group consisting of metals, metal oxides, metal nitrides, metal carbides, metal oxynitrides, metal oxyborides, semi-metals defined as semiconductors, semi-metallic oxides, semi-metallic nitrides, semi-metallic carbides, semi-metallic oxynitrides, and combinations thereof.

In embodiments, the second deposition means are configured to perform a PECVD process which requires, as illustrated for example in Fig.2, at least one electrode 4 arranged at a distance d, preferably between about 0 mm and approximately 40 cm, more preferably between 0 mm and 30 mm from the support means 2. Preferably, a turning device as illustrated in FIG. 2 includes means, not shown in the figure, for the samples to be transferred from one side of the structure to the other, such as the two sides of a cylindrical surface. This can be achieved for example by involving an Archimedean screw or the like.

In some variants, the electrode 4 is placed at a distance d of between about 0.3 cm and about 10 cm from the support means 2.

This electrode is preferably an electrode 4 configured to receive an RF signal. In a variant, the electrode 4 can be replaced or combined by a coil which is powered by an RF signal leading to an inductive coupling for the generation of the plasma.

It should be noted that, to obtain tight layers of SiOx, the substrates to be coated must be placed near an RF electrode 4 having a self-bias of at least 50 volts, preferably of at least 100 V. The inventors have identified that this bias generates and provides the necessary ion bombardment of the growth layers on the substrates. In some variants, as we will see in more detail, the electrically conductive substrates can be in direct contact with an RF electrode. In these variants, the substrates act as an electrode and can be negatively biased, which provides the necessary bombardment of ions.

[0058] The applied radio frequency (RF) has a preferred frequency of 13.56 MHz. The frequency of the RF signal is preferably greater than 1 MHz. The peak-to-peak voltage Vpp applied is preferably between 350 and 450 V, more preferably substantially 400 V, which leads to a bias voltage generally greater than 150-200 V.

In some embodiments, said support means 2 comprise at least one turning device such as a cylinder 22, inside which said plurality of substrates 3 can be contained.

By way of example, Fig.1 illustrates an embodiment in which said electrode 4 is an electrode of elongated shape which is arranged substantially parallel to the wall of a support of cylindrical shape defining a virtual axis of rotation 22a. The rotation of the cylinder ensures, during the deposition process, that the substrates 3 are turned over so as to obtain a coating on all the faces of the substrates. Cylinder 22 may contain a mechanical structure such as an Archimedean screw for sample mixing. In a preferred variant, when a first coating has been applied to all the faces of the substrates, the steps of the second coating deposition process are carried out while the substrates 3 are again turned over. In some variations, a reversal cylinder 22 can be rotated in an opposite direction for the second coating deposition process. In some variations, the cylinder 22 can undergo different rotational frequencies during the deposition processes and the cylinder can also be vibrated in any direction. In some variants, said electrode 4 may have the shape of a flat blade or may be a curved blade whose curvature, defined in a plane perpendicular to said axis of rotation 22a, is the same as the curvature of said cylindrical support 22. In some variants, the curvature of said curved blade 4 can be a fraction of the curvature of said cylindrical support, said fraction being between 0.1 and 1, without counting 1. In some variants, the curvature of said curved blade 4 is smaller than the curvature of said cylindrical support.

[0061] In exemplary embodiments, the cylindrical support of the embodiment of FIG. 1 can have the following dimensions: length of cylinder 22: between 10 cm and 200 cm, preferably between 20 cm and 100 cm; diameter D: between 50 mm and 800 mm, preferably between 80 mm and 350 mm.

[0062] In one embodiment, said cylinder 22 may be a hexagonal tube or any other shape and may include at least one glass part. In a variant, this cylindrical support consists at least partially of a ceramic material, for example glass, and has a wall whose thickness is between 1 mm and 10 mm, preferably between 2 mm and 4 mm. This thickness does not necessarily have to be homogeneous.

It is understood that in the embodiments, said support means can have any shape, preferably a shape having at least one axis of symmetry. In certain variants, these support means can have more than 2 axes of rotation which can have any orientation with respect to the direction of gravity.

[0064] In certain variants, not illustrated in the figures, the turning over of the samples 3 can be achieved by at least two recessed support means, such as a first cylinder configured inside a second larger cylinder, said first and second cylinders comprising means allowing the samples to pass between said first and second cylinders.

In an advantageous embodiment, at least one electrically conductive coil can be arranged inside or outside said support means 2. The installation of such an electric coil can be useful in the case where a uniform plasma must be obtained inside the reversal chamber. For example, in the arrangement illustrated in Fig.1, the RF electrode can be replaced by a coil which is wound around the turning cylinder 22. In certain variants, part of said support means can comprise a first coil arranged externally close to its outer surface and a second part of said support means may comprise a second coil arranged inside and close to the inner surface of said support means.

[0066] In an advantageous variant, illustrated in FIG. 3, an electrical ground electrode 23 is arranged inside said support means 2 which is preferably a cylinder 24, being at least partially made of an electrically conductive material being said electrode 4. It is understood that what matters is the voltage difference between said central electrode 23 and the outer surface of said cylinder 24, which means that the central electrode 23 can have an electric potential different from zero. In a variant illustrated in Fig.4, the central electrode 26 has a higher electric potential than the electric potential of the outer and/or inner surface of the support means 2.

[0067] In the advantageous embodiments, illustrated in FIG. 5 and electrically reversed in FIG. 6, a curved-shaped electrode is arranged outside a cylindrical-shaped turning device 2. In these embodiments, the cylinder 34, 38 is preferably made at least partially of a non-conductive dielectric material. The average distance e of the electrode 4 follows the same rules as those described in the embodiment of FIG. 2.

[0068] In an advantageous embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7, said support means 2 comprise a step-shaped turning device 44 comprising at least one set of steps which may be in the form of a staircase.

In one embodiment, the reactor 1 comprises an arrangement of electrodes 44 comprising a first set of steps 40 which is arranged substantially parallel to a second reversal arrangement 44 in the form of steps.

[0070] In some variants, this stepped arrangement can be configured into a helical-shaped structure or any other non-linear structure. In some variations, one set of steps would be sufficient and a second set of steps might not be necessary.

[0071] It is understood that not all of the tiers of a step-shaped turnaround arrangement 44 need be identical. At least one of the tiers may have a curved surface.

[0072] In the embodiment of FIG. 7, the turning arrangement 2 may include internal baffles 48 which may be of any shape and number and which serve to improve the efficiency of the turning process. In certain variants, said deflectors and/or steps 40 can be vibrating/oscillating and comprise actuators which can be micro-actuators and/or electromagnetic actuators or piezoelectric actuators.

In an advantageous embodiment, said support means 2 are arranged in a chamber comprising a first array 50 of electrodes 52 and a second array 60 of electrodes 62, each electrode 52 of said first array 50 being substantially parallel and facing to one of the electrodes 62 of said second network 60.

[0074] In an embodiment illustrated in FIG. 8, said first array of 50 and said second array of 60 electrodes 52, 62 are arranged on virtual cylindrical surfaces.

[0075] Fig.8 illustrates a variant in which a first network 50 of electrodes is at a low potential, for example connected to an electrical ground. Alternatively, the second arrangement of electrodes 60 may be at low electrical potential. In some variants, other interleaved electrodes can be configured inside a drum 2.

[0076] In the variants illustrated in Fig.9, a plurality of electrodes can be configured on the interior surface and/or in the wall of a cylindrical drum.

[0077] Figs. 10 and Figs. 11 illustrate exemplary configurations in which said support means 2 can be rotated, shaken and vibrated/oscillated. In Fig.10, container 2b is configured to avoid ejecting samples during operation. In some variants, a vibrating feed bowl, also defined here as a bowl, configured to undergo vertical translations V which may be vibrations and/or shocks, can be arranged on said support means. For example, a vibrating bowl may be placed on platform 70 in the embodiment illustrated in Fig.11.

In the embodiments where the support is or includes a vibrating feeding bowl, the bowl is powered by RF and generates the plasma. The interior of said bowl can be structured by spiral staircases and/or baffles. Baffles can be used to rotate specimens or to align specimens. The bowl is preferably a vibrating/oscillating system which moves the samples in spiral staircases from bottom to top. At the top, the samples fall to the bottom, which allows the rotation of the samples. Different spiral staircases can be integrated into the bowl. The dimensions of the bowl and the stairs depend on the size and weight of the samples.

[0079] Vibrating bowl feeders are well known to skilled persons and are not described in more detail here. Reference is made herein to the following documents and website, all of which are incorporated in their entirety: documents: US4181216A and US 4362455 A website: http://www.vibrationsfoerdertechnik.de/.

In the variants illustrated in Fig.10 and Fig. 11, a scraper and/or a grater 2b or 72 can be placed on top of the support 70 which mixes the substrates. This scraper can be static or rotary.

In some variants, the drum consists of a support 70 on which is arranged a container 72. In some variants, an additional rotation can be added to the support 70. Said support and/or container can have any shape or any size. This support can comprise a mechanical structure which allows a homogeneous distribution and a constant movement/rotation of the samples.

In an embodiment illustrated in Fig.12, said support means 2 comprise at least one shaped electrode 49 which comprises a surface 49a which is shaped so as to be able to retain a sample for a predefined time interval. Shaped electrode 49 may have a rough surface or a surface that includes valleys and peaks such as the star-shaped surface shown in FIG. 12. The shaped electrode may also be shaped such that its surface has a shaped cross-section of sinusoidal shape, said cross-section being defined perpendicular to the longitudinal axis of the shaped electrode 49. Alternatively, said shaped electrode can be arranged so as to rotate with a speed of rotation different from, or even opposite to, the speed of rotation of the external surface of the turning device, as illustrated by the angles θ1 and θ2 of FIG. 12.

In another embodiment, illustrated in FIG. 13, a plurality of embedded cylindrical structures (stages) are arranged so as to carry out, during the same deposition process, the deposition of different types of samples. At each floor, samples can be added. These stages may also include a mechanical structure which allows for homogeneous distribution and constant movement/rotation of the samples and may also allow movement of the samples from one stage to another. It is understood that in the case of encased turnaround structures, such as encased cylinders, different feed gases may be introduced into the different chambers which are defined by the encased structures.

In another embodiment, the cylinder plasma is generated by an RF-powered coil that surrounds the cylinder. Here, in general, the coil replaces the electrode 4. However, the configuration shown is not limited to substitution, and the coil and the electrode can be applied in parallel. In general, all the electrodes of the other figures can be replaced or combined by a coil.

[0085] In another embodiment, the plasma may be generated by a plurality of RF-powered rotating rods. The samples are placed on the rotating rods. This rotation will also impose a rotation of the samples. The rods may contain grooves which hold the specimens in place during rotation. The rods may contain spirals which move the samples. It is understood that a wide variety of configurations using rotating rods or cylinders can be used. For example, at least two rotating rods or cylinders which are not parallel can be arranged.

[0086] It is understood that there is no limitation in the possible shapes or configurations of the support means 2 which make it possible to ensure a reversal/mixing/rotation of the samples during the coating process. For the support means, any shape can be considered, as well as any material or any surface finish. For example, the support means 2 can comprise coated surface parts and/or rough surfaces and/or structured parts. It is also understood that the support means may include parts which are made of different materials. For example, a cylindrically-shaped support 2 can comprise a plurality of cylindrical parts comprising at least a metal part and a dielectric part, such as a ceramic part.

In some variants, said support means 2 may comprise addressable actuators. For example, a cylindrically-shaped drum may include a plurality of piezo or mems actuators configured on its inner surface so that actuation motion may be combined with external motion that actuates the carrier or drum in such a way as to improve performance. efficiency of turning/mixing/rotation, e.g. reducing the likelihood of small samples adhering to parts of the drum during the coating process.

It is generally understood that the different embodiments of the invention can be combined. For example, in some variations, a star-shaped electrode may be provided in a chamber which also includes a stair-shaped electrode.

Experimental results

[0089] Figs 14 a-c illustrate exemplary stacks comprising at least one organic layer 32 and one inorganic layer 34 made on different types of substrates. Figs 14a-c only show cross sections of coated samples. The number of batteries composed of organic and inorganic layers is not limited.

Claims (17)

1. Reactor (1) for simultaneously coating a plurality of individual substrates (3) with a multilayer coating (30) comprising at least one organic layer (32) and at least one inorganic layer (34), in which said reactor (1) comprises a single deposition chamber in which first deposition means and second deposition means are arranged to deposit, during operation of the reactor (1), said at least one organic layer (32) and said at least one least one inorganic layer (34) respectively, said reactor (1) further comprising support means (2) for the individual substrates (3), said support means (2) being configured to invert each individual substrate (3) during deposition of said organic layers (32) and inorganic (34). 2. A reactor (1) according to claim 1, wherein said supporting means (2) comprises one of the following: a vibrating support, a mixing means or an overturning means or a combination thereof. 3. Reactor (1) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said first deposition means are configured to perform, during operation of the reactor (1), a CVD and/or PECVD deposition process. 4. Reactor (1) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein said second deposition means are configured to carry out, during operation of the reactor (1), one of the following deposition processes: PECVD, ALD, CVD, by evaporation or by spraying. 5. Reactor (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, wherein said at least one organic coating (32) is a layer of parylene. 6. Reactor (1) according to one of claims 1 to 5, wherein said at least one inorganic coating (34) is a layer chosen from the group consisting of metals, metal oxides, metal nitrides, metal carbides , metal oxynitrides, metal oxyborides, semiconductors, semiconductor oxides, semiconductor nitrides, semiconductor carbides, semiconductor oxynitrides, and combinations thereof. 7. Reactor (1) according to one of the preceding claims, in which the second deposition means are configured to carry out a PECVD process and comprise at least one electrode (4) arranged at a distance of between 0 mm and 40 cm from the means bracket (2). 8. Reactor (1) according to one of claims 1 to 7, wherein said support means (2) comprise a turning cylinder (22, 24, 28, 34, 38, 76) inside which said plurality of substrates (3) can be contained. 9. Reactor (1) according to claim 8, wherein said cylinder (22) comprises at least a part made of an electrically non-conductive dielectric material. 10. Reactor (1) according to claim 8 or 9, wherein an electrical ground electrode (23) is arranged inside said cylinder (22), said cylinder (22) being made at least partially of an electrically conductive material which is said electrode (4). 11. Reactor (1) according to claim 8 or 9, wherein an electrically conductive electrode (26) is arranged inside said cylinder (22), made at least partially of an electrically conductive material, said cylinder (22) being configured as an electrical ground electrode. 12. Reactor (1) according to one of claims 1 to 11, wherein said support means (2) are arranged in a chamber comprising a first network (50) of grounded electrodes (52) and a second array (60) of electrically powered electrodes (62), said first array (50) and said second array (60) of electrodes (52, 62) being arranged in a cylindrical configuration and wherein the different electrodes (52, 62 ) are arranged substantially parallel. 13. A reactor (1) according to claim 12, wherein said first (50) and said second (60) array of electrodes (52, 62) are arranged on the inner surface or in the wall of a drum made of a non-conductive dielectric material, preferably quartz, or glass. 14. Reactor (1) according to one of claims 2 to 13, wherein said support means (2) comprise a star-shaped electrode inside said turning means. 15. Reactor (1) according to one of claims 2 to 14, wherein said turning means comprises at least one set of steps. 16. Reactor (1) according to one of claims 1 to 15, wherein said support means (2) comprise at least one vibrating feed bowl. 17. Reactor (1) according to one of claims 8 to 16, comprising at least one electric coil arranged inside and/or outside said support means (2), said electric coil being supplied with radio- frequencies (RF) to generate a plasma inside said cylinder (22).