As in traditional sputtering, the incited plasma bombards the exposed target surface, ejecting individual atoms which are then incident on the substrate surface, forming a conductive thin film. Contrasted with traditional applications, microplasma sputtering offers numerous advantages, including limited to no post-processing requirements, as controlled positioning of the substrate can produce precise patterning without the need for subsequent photolithographic masking and etching, and versatility of substrate form, in that microsputterers are not constrained to planar deposition. Additionally, atmospheric conditions permitted by this method eliminate the substantial cost barrier presented by the necessity for the expensive, complex vacuum systems in which contemporary sputtering operations are performed.