Electron-beam lithography

About: Electron-beam lithography is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 8982 publications have been published within this topic receiving 143325 citations. The topic is also known as: e-beam lithography.

Chalcogenide phase-change thin films used as grayscale photolithography materials.

Abstract: Chalcogenide phase-change thin films are used in many fields, such as optical information storage and solid-state memory. In this work, we present another application of chalcogenide phase-change thin films, i.e., as grayscale photolithgraphy materials. The grayscale patterns can be directly inscribed on the chalcogenide phase-change thin films by a single process through direct laser writing method. In grayscale photolithography, the laser pulse can induce the formation of bump structure, and the bump height and size can be precisely controlled by changing laser energy. Bumps with different height and size present different optical reflection and transmission spectra, leading to the different gray levels. For example, the continuous-tone grayscale images of lifelike bird and cat are successfully inscribed onto Sb2Te3 chalcogenide phase-change thin films using a home-built laser direct writer, where the expression and appearance of the lifelike bird and cat are fully presented. This work provides a way to fabricate complicated grayscale patterns using laser-induced bump structures onto chalcogenide phase-change thin films, different from current techniques such as photolithography, electron beam lithography, and focused ion beam lithography. The ability to form grayscale patterns of chalcogenide phase-change thin films reveals many potential applications in high-resolution optical images for micro/nano image storage, microartworks, and grayscale photomasks.

Digital optical spectrometer-on-chip

Abstract: A concept of digital optical spectrometer-on-chip is proposed and results of their fabrication and characterization are reported. The devices are based on computer-designed digital planar holograms which involves millions of lines specifically located and oriented in order to direct output light into designed focal points according to the wavelength. Spectrometers were fabricated on silicon dioxide and hafnium dioxide planar waveguides using electron beam lithography and dry etching. Optical performances of devices with up to 1000 channels for a central wavelength of 660 nm are reported.

Electroless deposition and nanolithography can control the formation of materials at the nano-scale for plasmonic applications.

Abstract: The new revolution in materials science is being driven by our ability to manipulate matter at the molecular level to create structures with novel functions and properties. The aim of this paper is to explore new strategies to obtain plasmonic metal nanostructures through the combination of a top down method, that is electron beam lithography, and a bottom up technique, that is the chemical electroless deposition. This technique allows a tight control over the shape and size of bi- and three-dimensional metal patterns at the nano scale. The resulting nanostructures can be used as constituents of Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy (SERS) substrates, where the electromagnetic field is strongly amplified. Our results indicate that, in electroless growth, high quality metal nanostructures with sizes below 50 nm may be easily obtained. These findings were explained within the framework of a diffusion limited aggregation (DLA) model, that is a simulation model that makes it possible to decipher, at an atomic level, the rules governing the evolution of the growth front; moreover, we give a description of the physical mechanisms of growth at a basic level. In the discussion, we show how these findings can be utilized to fabricate dimers of silver nanospheres where the size and shape of those spheres is controlled with extreme precision and can be used for very large area SERS substrates and nano-optics, for single molecule detection.

Influence of nanoparticle height on plasmonic resonance wavelength and electromagnetic field enhancement in two-dimensional arrays

Abstract: A detailed experimental and theoretical study of the plasmonic properties of silver nanoparticle arrays as a function of nanoparticle height is presented. Specifically, several square periodic arrays have been fabricated by electron beam lithography and characterized via transmission spectroscopy measurements. The same arrays have also been numerically investigated via finite-difference time-domain calculations of their scattering and absorption cross sections and steady-state field intensity distributions. The results of this study show that the collective plasmonic resonances of these arrays can be effectively blueshifted by increasing the nanoparticle height, while at the same time maximizing the average field enhancement in the substrate and maintaining small absorption losses. This approach can therefore be used to extend the spectral reach of lithographically defined metallic nanoparticle arrays for practical applications such as light-emission efficiency enhancement.

Fabrication and characterization of highly reproducible, high resistance nanogaps made by focused ion beam milling

Abstract: Nanoelectrodes were fabricated combining photolithography, electron beam lithography and focused ion beam milling allowing for large scale integration and nanoengineering of the electrode propertie ...