Atomic force microscope based nanofabrication of master pattern molds for use in soft lithography

The authors have developed a technique that couples nanolithographic patterning using an atomic force microscope with the parallel patterning abilities of soft lithography. Master pattern generation is accomplished using local anodic oxidation as a mask pattern for anisotropic wet etching of Si 110 . The resulting nanostructures are then used as master patterns for the molding of polymeric stamps to be used for microcontact printing of alkanethiols. Analysis of the resulting patterns demonstrates the validity of this method as a simple, effective, and low cost alternative to conduct and prototype nanoscale patterning in a parallel fashion. © 2007 American Institute of Physics. DOI: 10.1063/1.2787965