This article introduces in archival form the Nanolithography Toolbox, a platform-independent software package for scripted lithography pattern layout generation. The Center for Nanoscale Science and Technology (CNST) at the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) developed the Nanolithography Toolbox to help users of the CNST NanoFab design devices with complex curves and aggressive critical dimensions. Using parameterized shapes as building blocks, the Nanolithography Toolbox allows users to rapidly design and layout nanoscale devices of arbitrary complexity through scripting and programming. The Toolbox offers many parameterized shapes, including structure libraries for micro- and nanoelectromechanical systems (MEMS and NEMS) and nanophotonic devices. Furthermore, the Toolbox allows users to precisely define the number of vertices for each shape or create vectorized shapes using Bezier curves. Parameterized control allows users to design smooth curves with complex shapes. The Toolbox is applicable to a broad range of design tasks in the fabrication of microscale and nanoscale devices.

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The Nanolithography Toolbox.

We present a new approach for fabricating multiple phase level holographic optical elements in fused silica. The approach utilizes electron-beam lithography, and it is particularly applicable for devices with minimum feature sizes below 1 μm. We have succeeded in fabricating arrays of multiple phase level optical elements with minimum features of 0.4 μm. We also report on the diffraction efficiencies of cylindrical f/1 lenses with 3 mm focal lengths. The results agree very well with the theoretical predictions. We also predict that an increase in diffraction efficiency of as much as 10 % can be realized from the outer portions of a holographic lens through better registration of the multiple layers.

Multiple Phase Level Computer-Generated Holograms Etched In Fused Silica

High-resolution electron-beam lithography for fabricating visible semiconductor lasers with curved mirrors and integrated holograms

A thin metal mask is desirable when defining narrow structures by ion milling. This article explores the definition of narrow high moment iron nitride inductive head pole structures by ion milling in Ar/O/sub 2/ and Ar/N/sub 2/ gas environments through a Ti mask. Modest ion milling selectivities between Ti and the iron nitrides (FeAlN and FeTaN) were achieved by ion milling in Ar/O/sub 2/, although the mill rate of the iron nitrides was reduced dramatically. Selectivities of over 4 were achieved by ion milling in Ar/N/sub 2/ ambient, without severely reducing the ion milling rates of the iron nitrides. Hence this reactive mill process is a viable method for defining narrow iron nitride poles by ion milling at the wafer level.

A Reactive Ion Milling Process For Patterning Narrow Track Iron Nitride Recording Head Poles At The Wafer Level

This paper describes the fabrication of computer-generated holographic lenses in fused silica; the lenses are designed to collimate the output beams of diode lasers. The lenses are cylindrical to collimate the beams in one direction at a time and to maximize the fill factor in the laser array. The lens patterns were written into resist on the substrate using an electron beam. The lenses were transferred to the fused silica substrate via reactive ion etching. Two layers of etching were demonstrated.

Collimation Of Diode Laser Arrays Using Etched Cylindrical Computer-Generated Holographic Lenses

Microzone plates have been fabricated with the aid of a 100- keV electron beam lithography system. The system has been designed for generating structures with lateral dimensions of less than 100 nm. The particular demands on high resolution, high efficiency imaging Fresnel zone plates and the resultant problems concerning lithography and pattern transfer are discussed. We show a step-by-step improvement of fabricated microzone plates with an outermost zone width of 50 nm. A thin titanium intermediate layer is used as a stable mask to generate ion-milled gold absorber rings with very steep walls. The zone plates have been tested by imaging one another in an x-ray microscope and ave been compared to the image obtained with the holographically fabricated MZP3 microzone plate from Gottingen.

P. Guttmann

Papers

Electron Beam Lithography And Nanometer Structures: Fabrication Of Microzone Plates

X-ray microscope images with Fresnel zone plates fabricated by electron beam nanolithography