  The vacuum arc is a well-known technique to produce coating with enhanced
adhesion and film density. Many cathodic arc deposition systems are actually in
use in industry and research. They all work under (high) vacuum conditions in
which water vapor pressure is an important source of film contamination,
especially in the pulsed arc mode of operation. Here we present a Cathodic Arc
system working under Ultra High Vacuum conditions (UHVCA). UHVCA has been used
to produce ultra-pure niobium films with excellent structural and electrical
properties at a deposition temperature lower than 100oC. The UHVCA technique
therefore opens new perspectives for all applications requiring ultra-pure
films or, as in the case of Plasma Immersion Ion Implantation, ultra-pure
plasmas.
