Advanced thin-film materials processing in the ultra-vacuum of space

The utilization of the vacuum of space for thin-film materials development has been pioneered by the Wake Shield Facility (WSF) program. The WSF is a 4 m diameter disc-shaped free-flying platform designed to generate an ultra-vacuum in low earth orbit (LEO) space, and to utilize that ultra-vacuum for the fabrication of thin-film materials by epitaxial growth. In the three flights of WSF, high-quality GaAs-based epitaxial thin films were grown, vacuum quality was assessed, and cooperative experiments were activated. The promising results on high-purity film growth indicate future benefits of thin-film materials fabrication in LEO for terrestrial applications in high-performance electronic devices. (C) 2001 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd.