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Proton-fountain Electric-field-assisted Nanolithography (PEN)

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Tip-Based Nanofabrication

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Abstract

This chapter describes the implementation of Proton-fountain Electric-field-assisted Nanolithography (PEN) as a potential tool for fabricating nanostructures by exploiting the properties of stimuli-responsive materials. The merits of PEN are demonstrated using poly(4-vinylpyridine) (P4VP) films, whose structural (swelling) response is triggered by the delivery of protons from an acidic fountain tip into the polymer substrate. Despite the probably many intervening factors affecting the fabrication process, PEN underscores the improved reliability in the pattern formation when using an external electric field (with voltage values of up to 5 V applied between the probe and the sample) as well as when controlling the environmental humidity conditions. PEN thus expands the applications of P4VP as a stimuli-responsive material into the nanoscale domain, which could have technological impact on the fabrication of memory and sensing devices as well as in the fabrication of nanostructures that closely mimic natural bio-environments. The reproducibility and reversible character of the PEN fabrication process offers opportunities to also use these films as test bed for studying fundamental (thermodynamic and kinetic) physical properties of responsive materials at the nanoscale level.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Lattice models of polymer solutions are widely used for their simplicity and computational convenience. Their use for predicting solution properties of polymers solutions dates back to the 1940s.

  2. 2.

    Since all phosphate salts are used in hydrated condition, the molecular weight (MW) should include the corresponding portion of water. For NaH2PO4 we should include one molecules of water, hence the MW is 137.99. On the other hand, for the Na2HPO4 we should consider 7 molecules of water (heptahydrate), which gives a MW of 268.07. Hence, if 13.8 and 0.036 g of NaH2PO4 and Na2HPO4 are used respectively, then we can quote the concentration of NaH2PO4 (the buffer strength) to be practically equal to 0.1 M.

  3. 3.

    AFM XE-120 from Park Systems Inc.

  4. 4.

    ibid.

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  1. Department of Physics, Portland State University, Portland, OR, 97201, USA

    Andres La Rosa

  2. Department of Chemistry, Portland State University, Portland, OR, 97201, USA

    Mingdi Yan

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  1. Dept. Mechanical &, Aerospace Engineering, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA

    Ampere A. Tseng

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La Rosa, A., Yan, M. (2011). Proton-fountain Electric-field-assisted Nanolithography (PEN). In: Tseng, A. (eds) Tip-Based Nanofabrication. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-9899-6_8

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