Electrostatic force-assisted nanoimprint lithography (EFAN)

Nano Lett. 2005 Mar;5(3):527-30. doi: 10.1021/nl0480161.

Abstract

We present and demonstrate a novel imprint method, electrostatic force-assisted nanoimprint lithography (EFAN), where a voltage applied between a mold and a substrate generates an electrostatic force that presses the mold into a resist on the substrate. We have successfully used EFAN to pattern nanostructures in a photocurable resist spin-coated on a wafer, with high fidelity and excellent uniformity over the entire substrate, in ambient atmosphere without using a vacuum chamber. In initial tests without any process optimization, 100 nm half-pitch gratings with a residual layer thickness of 22+/-5 nm were imprinted across a 100 mm diameter wafer in about 2 s. Furthermore, numerical calculations show that the field magnitude experienced by the dielectric layers on the substrate is much less than their breakdown limit. Hence, EFAN is well suited for step-and-repeat nanoimprint lithography, and its simple operation can simplify and speed up multilayer alignment process.

Publication types

  • Evaluation Study
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Crystallization / methods
  • Electrochemistry / methods*
  • Electrodes
  • Electromagnetic Fields*
  • Nanostructures / chemistry*
  • Nanostructures / radiation effects*
  • Nanostructures / ultrastructure
  • Nanotechnology / methods*
  • Static Electricity*
  • Stress, Mechanical
  • Surface Properties*