Various metal films were deposited by magnetron sputtering, and their thickness distributions were measured. The distributions are considered to depend on the angular distribution of the atoms ejected from a target. Some metals showed a thickness distribution with its maximum at the anode center while the others showed a thickness distribution with its maximum at a position slightly inside the target erosion. According to a theory and computer simulation, as the binding energy (i.e. cohesive energy) of a target decreases and the mass of the target atoms increases, the atoms tend to be ejected normally with their angular distribution being apt to be over-cosine. Thus, the thickness distributions were discussed in relation to the binding energy of the metals and the mass of the target atoms. The thickness distributions were also investigated for different discharge voltages.
