Dip-pen nanolithography of electrical contacts to single graphene flakes.

This study evaluates an alternative to electron-beam lithography for fabricating nanoscale graphene devices. Dip-pen nanolithography is used for defining monolayer graphene flakes and for patterning of gold electrodes through writing of an alkylthiol on thin films of gold evaporated onto graphene flakes. A wet gold etching step was used to form the individual devices.

Parallel fabrication of electrode arrays on single-walled carbon nanotubes using dip-pen-nanolithography-patterned etch masks.

This article presents a novel application of using dip-pen nanolithography (DPN) to fabricate Au electrodes concurrently in a high-throughput fashion through an etch resist. We have fabricated 26 pairs of electrodes, where cleanly etched electrode architectures, along with a high degree of feature-size controllability and tip-to-tip uniformity, were observed. Moreover, electrode gaps in the sub-100-nm regime have been successfully fabricated.

Dip-pen nanolithography of electrical contacts to single-walled carbon nanotubes.

This paper discusses a method for the direct patterning of Au electrodes at nanoscale resolution using dip-pen nanolithography, with proof-of-concept demonstrated by creating single-walled carbon nanotube devices. This technique enables insight into three key concepts at the nanoscale: using dip-pen nanolithography as an alternative to electron-beam lithography for writing contacts to carbon nanotubes, understanding the integrity of contacts and devices patterned with this technique, and on a more fundamental level, providing a facile method to compare and understand electrical and Raman spectroscopy data from the same isolated carbon nanotube. Electrical contacts to individual and small bundle single-walled carbon nanotubes were masked by an alkylthiol that was deposited via dip-pen nanolithography on a thin film of Au evaporated onto spin-cast, nonpercolating, and highly isolated single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Direct patterning of gold nanoparticles using dip-pen nanolithography.

Various methods for the patterned assembly of metal nanoparticles have been developed in order to harness their unique electrical and optical properties for device applications. This paper discusses a method for direct writing of Au nanoparticles at nanoscale resolution using dip-pen nanolithography. First, a procedure was developed for increasing the loading of Au nanoparticles onto AFM tips to prolong patterning life.

Solution-assisted assembly of organic semiconducting single crystals on surfaces with patterned wettability.

Two efficient approaches to assembling organic semiconducting single crystals are described. The methods rely on solvent wetting and dewetting on substrates with patterned wettability to selectively direct the deposition or removal of organic crystals. Substrates were functionalized with different self-assembled monolayers (SAMs) to achieve the desired wettabilities.