Self-leveling two-dimensional probe arrays for Dip Pen Nanolithography.

Scanning probe lithography (SPL) has witnessed a dramatic transformation with the advent of two-dimensional (2D) probe arrays. Although early work with single probes was justifiably assessed as being too slow to practically apply in a nanomanufacturing context, we have recently demonstrated throughputs up to 3x10(7) microm(2)/h--in some cases exceeding e-beam lithography--using centimeter square arrays of 55,000 tips tailored for Dip Pen Nanolithography (DPN). Parallelizing DPN has been critical because there exists a need for a lithographic process that is not only high throughput, but also high resolution (DPN has shown line widths down to 14 nm) with massive multiplexing capabilities.

Site-specific dual ink dip pen nanolithography.

The ability to deposit different materials with nanoscale precision at user-specified locations is a very important attribute of dip pen nanolithography (DPN). However, the potential of DPN goes beyond simple deposition since DPN used in conjunction with lateral force microscopy (LFM) allows site-specific investigations of nanoscale properties. In this work, we use two different inks, 16-mercaptohexadecanoic acid (MHA) and 1-octadecanethiol (ODT) to show site-specific dual ink DPN enabled exclusively by our proprietary software.

Dip Pen Nanolithography: a "Desktop Nanofab" approach using high-throughput flexible nanopatterning.

The ability to perform controllable nanopatterning with a broad range of "inks" at ambient conditions is a key aspect of the dip pen nanolithography (DPN) technique. The traditional ink system to demonstrate DPN is n-alkanethiols on a gold substrate, but the DPN method has found numerous other applications since. This article is meant to outline recent advances in the DPN toolkit, both in terms of research and patterning technology, and to discuss applications of DPN as a viable nanofabrication method.

Dip Pen Nanolithography (DPN): process and instrument performance with NanoInk's NSCRIPTOR system.

Precision nanoscale deposition is a fundamental requirement for much of current nanoscience research and promises to facilitate exciting industrial applications. Tailoring chemical composition and surface structure on the sub-100 nm scale benefits researchers in topics ranging from catalysis, to biological recognition in nanoscale systems, to electronic connectivity on the nanoscale. Precision nanoscale deposition engenders applications such as additive photomask repair and nanodevice fabrication.