Simulation of magnetron sputtering cathode target water cooling system

In the magnetron sputtering deposition process, the target material undergoes rapid heating due to intensive ion bombardment, which may lead to melting or deformation. To investigate the influence of key parameters on the heat transfer efficiency of the target, this study established a continuous fluid and heat transfer model for the water-cooling system of a magnetron sputtering target based on fluid dynamics and heat transfer theory. The geometric model is derived from a self-developed ion beam reactive hybrid deposition system, ensuring practical relevance. Through numerical simulations analyzing the effects of inlet flow velocity and incident heat flux on the thermal-flow field, the steady-state temperature distribution on the target surface and velocity distribution of the cooling water are obtained. The numerical model is validated by comparing simulated outlet water temperatures with experimental measurements, showing excellent agreement and accurately capturing the temperature variation trends under different operating conditions. The results demonstrate that as the inlet water flow velocity increases, the target surface temperature decreases significantly and becomes more uniform, eventually stabilizing beyond a certain threshold. Conversely, as the incident heat flux increases, the target surface temperature rises gradually and the temperature gradient becomes more pronounced. Under typical operating conditions, simulation-based optimization confirms that increasing the outlet pipe length promotes a more uniform temperature distribution across the target surface. These findings provide a theoretical basis for thermal management optimization of magnetron sputtering cathodes in practical applications.