A new type of plasma sputtering device, named the hollow cathode magnetron (HCM), has been developed by surrounding a planar magnetron cathode with a hollow cathode structure. Operating characteristics of HCMs, current-voltage (I-V) curves for fixed discharge pressure and voltage-pressure (V-p) curves for fixed cathode current, are measured. Such characteristics are compared with their planar magnetron counterparts. New operation regimes, such as substantially lower pressures (0.3 mTorr), were discovered for HCMs. Cathode erosion profiles show marked improvement over planar magnetron in terms of material utilization. The use of HCMs for thin film deposition are discussed.