CFD Investigation of the Effect of Condensation Chamber Geometry on Nanoparticle Transport in Magnetron Sputtering

In magnetron sputtering-based gas aggregation sources, nanoparticle formation and yield are strongly influenced by the flow-regulated transport and residence time of particles within the condensation chamber. However, the effect of internal geometric parameters on flow structure and nanoparticle growth is not well understood. In this study, computational fluid dynamics (CFD) coupled with a discrete phase model (DPM) is employed to investigate how magnetron radius affects flow characteristics, particle transport, and their implications for nanoparticle formation. The results show that increasing the magnetron radius significantly enhances axial flow uniformity and suppresses vortex structures near the inlet. This shift from radial diffusion-dominated to primarily axial transport effectively reduces particle trapping and wall deposition. Furthermore, the regulation of flow structure modifies particle residence time distributions, which is considered a key factor associated with nanoparticle growth potential and size evolution in gas-phase synthesis. Larger magnetron radii promote more stable transport pathways and improve particle transmission efficiency, thereby improving particle transmission efficiency and providing more favorable conditions for nanoparticle formation. These findings indicate that geometric optimization can simultaneously enhance transport efficiency and influence the conditions potentially favorable for particle growth, providing valuable guidance for the design of high-yield nanoparticle synthesis systems. Overall, this work provides insight into how flow field characteristics influence nanoparticle transport and potential growth behavior, offering a foundation for optimizing magnetron sputtering-based nanoparticle synthesis.