Refractive index sensing and surface-enhanced Raman spectroscopy using silver–gold layered bimetallic plasmonic crystals

• Somi Kang,
• Sean E. Lehman,
• Matthew V. Schulmerich,
• An-Phong Le,
• Tae-woo Lee,
• Stephen K. Gray,
• Rohit Bhargava and
• Ralph G. Nuzzo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2492–2503, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.249

• useful new platform for chemical/spectroscopic sensing. Keywords: finite-difference time-domain; nanoimprint soft lithography; plasmonics; surface plasmon resonance; Introduction Studies of surface plasmons have attracted significant attention due to the diverse range of applications and processes in

• generating these plasmonic features [28][29][30][31][32][33]. Our work in this area has exploited soft nanoimprint lithography, a technique that permits reproducible replication of precisely defined nanometer-sized features over a large area (greater than 1 × 1 cm2), as a way to fabricate quantitative

• nanoimprint lithography The PCs were fabricated using soft nanoimprint lithography as previously reported [22][23][24][25][26][37][38]. In brief, a composite hard-PDMS/soft-PDMS mixture was cast on a patterned photoresist master with arrays of nanohole relief structures in order to fabricate the PCs. A glass

Electron beam induced deposition of silacyclohexane and dichlorosilacyclohexane: the role of dissociative ionization and dissociative electron attachment in the deposition process

• Ragesh Kumar T P,
• Sangeetha Hari,
• Krishna K Damodaran,
• Oddur Ingólfsson and
• Cornelis W. Hagen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2376–2388, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.237

• many ways complementary to current mask-based lithography methods and has high potential in areas where these are not applicable. Focused electron beam induced deposition is based on the exposure of precursor molecules, physisorbed on a substrates surface, to a narrowly focused high-energy electron

Increasing the stability of DNA nanostructure templates by atomic layer deposition of Al₂O₃ and its application in imprinting lithography

• Hyojeong Kim,
• Kristin Arbutina,
• Anqin Xu and
• Haitao Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2363–2375, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.236

• resistive to UV/O3 oxidation. The ALD-coated DNA templates were used for a direct pattern transfer to poly(L-lactic acid) films. Keywords: aluminium oxide (Al2O3); atomic layer deposition; DNA nanostructure; nanofabrication; nanoimprint lithography; pattern transfer; polymer stamp; replica molding

• are only a limited number of studies of the use of DNA nanostructures as master templates for soft lithography. Soft lithography relies on elastomeric stamps or molds bearing fine features of relief on their surfaces to transfer patterns [39]. The spatial resolution and diverse features of the relief

• structures on the stamps intrinsically limit the application of soft lithography. Thus, the preparation of master templates, where the stamps are derived, has become an important research area. State-of-the-art technologies for fabrication of the master templates are deep ultraviolet lithography (DUL) and

Expanding the molecular-ruler process through vapor deposition of hexadecanethiol

• Alexandra M. Patron,
• Timothy S. Hooker,
• Daniel F. Santavicca,
• Corey P. Causey and
• Thomas J. Mullen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2339–2344, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.233

• development of methods to produce nanoscale features with tailored chemical functionalities is fundamental for applications such as nanoelectronics and sensor fabrication. The molecular-ruler process shows great utility for this purpose as it combines top-down lithography for the creation of complex

• lithography [12][13]. One promising strategy for such fabrication utilizes top-down lithography to create complex architectures over large areas in conjunction with molecular self-assembly, which enables precise control over the physical and chemical properties of the small features [1][2]. The molecular

• techniques such as photolithography or electron-beam lithography (Figure 1) [14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24]. In short, a metal structure that has been patterned on a non-metal substrate (e.g., Si) using conventional lithography is subsequently covered by a metal-ligated multilayer through the

Tailoring the nanoscale morphology of HKUST-1 thin films via codeposition and seeded growth

• Landon J. Brower,
• Lauren K. Gentry,
• Amanda L. Napier and
• Mary E. Anderson

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2307–2314, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.230

• lithography techniques to trap the precursor solution for subsequent solvent evaporation to produce isolated MOF crystallites in predetermined positions [22][23][24]. Microfluidics and ink-jet printing work in similar manners, delivering the solution according to a predefined design for subsequent MOF crystal

• formation [25][26]. Processing conditions have been optimized for some specific MOF systems to utilize conventional lithography for patterning of the film [8][27][28]. While these methods offer means to control the spatial location of the MOF for integration, they typically do not present processing

Fabrication of gold-coated PDMS surfaces with arrayed triangular micro/nanopyramids for use as SERS substrates

• Jingran Zhang,
• Yongda Yan,
• Peng Miao and
• Jianxiong Cai

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 2271–2282, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.227

• can be selectively employed to obtain surface enhancement with well-dispersed micro/nanostructures that provide the SERS sensor with an effective identification capability for adsorbed markers. Typically, SERS substrates have been fabricated using lithography-based technologies [11][12][13][14][15][16

• ], such as electron-beam lithography (EBL) [11][12], soft interference lithography (SIL) [13][14], and nanosphere lithography (NSL) [15][16]. To improve the reproducibility and production quantity of SERS substrates, researchers have focused on replicating molded micro/nanostructures as SERS substrates

• using imprint lithography. Several researchers have used biological organisms as biotemplates, such as the wings of cicadas [17][18] and butterflies [19][20][21]. A nanostructured SERS substrate was achieved for the replication of a biotemplate of a cicada wing and low concentrations of thiophenol and

Identifying the nature of surface chemical modification for directed self-assembly of block copolymers

• Laura Evangelio,
• Federico Gramazio,
• Matteo Lorenzoni,
• Michaela Gorgoi,
• Francisco Miguel Espinosa,
• Ricardo García,
• Francesc Pérez-Murano and
• Jordi Fraxedas

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1972–1981, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.198

• Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid (ICMM-CSIC), Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, 3, Cantoblanco, 28049 Madrid, Spain 10.3762/bjnano.8.198 Abstract In recent years, block copolymer lithography has emerged as a viable alternative technology for advanced lithography. In chemical-epitaxy-directed self

• [5][6]. When the BCP self-assembly is used in combination with surface prepatterning, aligned structures of alternative phases of the blocks can be obtained. This is the principle of DSA. The main advantages are a relaxation of the resolution requirements of traditional lithography methods, as the

• silicon wafer, left in the Figure) and the block copolymer domains. The first DSA (two steps) process uses electron beam lithography (EBL) [12] on a poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) resist with a subsequent substrate functionalization with oxygen plasma of the uncovered areas (top of Figure 1). The two

Application of visible-light photosensitization to form alkyl-radical-derived thin films on gold

• Rashanique D. Quarels,
• Xianglin Zhai,
• Neepa Kuruppu,
• Jenny K. Hedlund,
• Ashley A. Ellsworth,
• Amy V. Walker,
• Jayne C. Garno and
• Justin R. Ragains

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1863–1877, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.187

• deposition of robust alkyl thin films on Au surfaces using phthalimide esters as the alkyl radical precursors. In particular, we combine visible-light photosensitization with particle lithography to produce nanostructured thin films, the thickness of which can be measured easily using AFM cursor profiles

• lithography; photosensitization; TOF SIMS; Introduction The deposition of radical-derived organic thin films has emerged as an attractive alternative to the grafting of molecules such as thiols, chlorosilanes and alkoxysilanes [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23

• conditions (i.e., with benzyl nicotinamide). We also combined thin film deposition with particle lithography [10][17][45][46][47][48][49]. This approach to surface patterning uses photomasks consisting of silicon dioxide mesospheres (d = 500 nm) on surfaces to protect small, discrete regions of the surface

(Metallo)porphyrins for potential materials science applications

• Lars Smykalla,
• Carola Mende,
• Michael Fronk,
• Pablo F. Siles,
• Michael Hietschold,
• Georgeta Salvan,
• Dietrich R. T. Zahn,
• Oliver G. Schmidt,
• Tobias Rüffer and
• Heinrich Lang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1786–1800, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.180

• lithography [22][23]) is to functionalize the (metallo)porphyrins with terminal groups that allow their self-assembly on surfaces. Self-assemblies, giving rise to well-defined long-range ordered lateral structures, are frequently reported [24][25][26][27][28]. For example, in case that (metallo)porphyrins

• to match certain device requirements. For example, after proper manipulation and lithography procedures single molecular nanowires or dendrites might be realized. This certainly opens possibilities for application in materials science, for example, the integration into molecular-based devices. In

Fixation mechanisms of nanoparticles on substrates by electron beam irradiation

• Daichi Morioka,
• Tomohiro Nose,
• Taiki Chikuta,
• Kazutaka Mitsuishi and
• Masayuki Shimojo

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1523–1529, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.153

• produced by focused electron beam induced deposition (FEBID) [6], photo-lithography (PL), or micro-contact printing (μCP) [7]. However, the purity of the deposits from FEBID is generally low, and PL and μCP require complicated processes including the fabrication of masks or masters, exposure or stamping

A biofunctionalizable ink platform composed of catechol-modified chitosan and reduced graphene oxide/platinum nanocomposite

• Peter Sobolewski,
• Agata Goszczyńska,
• Małgorzata Aleksandrzak,
• Karolina Urbaś,
• Joanna Derkowska,
• Agnieszka Bartoszewska,
• Jacek Podolski,
• Ewa Mijowska and
• Mirosława El Fray

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1508–1514, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.151

• , providing cheaper, rapid alternatives to traditional lithography techniques. Particularly appealing are piezoelectric approaches, including inkjet [6] and microplotter systems [7], as they offer non-contact deposition under mild conditions. Importantly, these techniques are versatile, allowing for a broad

Light-induced magnetoresistance in solution-processed planar hybrid devices measured under ambient conditions

• Sreetama Banerjee,
• Daniel Bülz,
• Danny Reuter,
• Karla Hiller,
• Dietrich R. T. Zahn and
• Georgeta Salvan

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1502–1507, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.150

• trenches were patterned using conventional UV lithography and partially refilled with a thermally grown SiO2 layer of 130 nm. The cavity-like trench (see Figure 1b for a sketch) electrically isolates the electrodes. The process flow for the preparation of the HED-TIEs is similar to that described in [12

Calcium fluoride based multifunctional nanoparticles for multimodal imaging

• Marion Straßer,
• Joachim H. X. Schrauth,
• Sofia Dembski,
• Daniel Haddad,
• Bernd Ahrens,
• Stefan Schweizer,
• Bastian Christ,
• Alevtina Cubukova,
• Marco Metzger,
• Heike Walles,
• Peter M. Jakob and
• Gerhard Sextl

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1484–1493, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.148

• received little attention. There are only sporadic suggestions for the synthesis and application of this NP system as a labeling material. To date, CaF2 has attracted most attention with respect to UV lithography, UV-transparent optical lenses, the surface conditioning of glass, the promotion of

Micro- and nano-surface structures based on vapor-deposited polymers

• Hsien-Yeh Chen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1366–1374, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.138

• applied for surface modification regardless of the substrate material and geometry. Here, various ways to structure these vapor-deposited polymer thin films are described. Well-established and available photolithography and soft lithography techniques are widely performed for the creation of surface

• ]. Also, printing methods with elastomeric stamps or replica structures to transfer a material from a solution onto a surface, which are collectively related to imprinting lithography [15][16] or soft lithography [17][18], were developed. Thus, the early developments of the patterning and structuring

• attempted by direct electron beam (e-beam) lithography on vapor-deposited PPMA coatings, and 200 nm-sized features were obtained on the vapor-deposited poly(propargyl methacrylate) (PPMA) films [34]. Direct writing using a two-photon laser was also demonstrated on poly(p-xylylene) to fabricate 3D nano

Nanotopographical control of surfaces using chemical vapor deposition processes

• Meike Koenig and
• Joerg Lahann

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1250–1256, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.126

• feed. Trujillo et al. produced polymeric nanostructures using colloidal lithography [12]. In this technique, two-dimensional self-assembled monolayer (SAM) arrays of colloidal nanoparticles serve as lithographic templates for “nanobowl” patterns in an initiated chemical vapor deposition (iCVD) process

A top-down approach for fabricating three-dimensional closed hollow nanostructures with permeable thin metal walls

• Carlos Angulo Barrios and
• Víctor Canalejas-Tejero

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1231–1237, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.124

• on planar substrates offered by common lithography techniques. However, the fabrication of closed nanocages with permeable walls by means of top-down procedures is challenging due to the difficulty in obtaining robust, closed, 3D geometries with nanometer-thick shells. Thus, demonstrations of the use

• fabrication sequence of an array of closed nanocages (hollow nanopillars) made of thin-walled Al. First, an array of SU-8 negative resist nanopillars are created by electron-beam lithography (EBL) on an Al-coated Si substrate (Figure 1a). The SU-8 nanopillars exhibit a smooth surface with rounded top edges

• nanocontainers by just adding them to the SU-8 viscous resist before lithography. After the removal of the crosslinked SU-8 via oxygen-plasma treatment, the load is contained inside the nanocage. It is clear that the potential effect of the oxygen plasma on the caged substance should be taken into account. For

Growth, structure and stability of sputter-deposited MoS₂ thin films

• Reinhard Kaindl,
• Bernhard C. Bayer,
• Roland Resel,
• Thomas Müller,
• Viera Skakalova,
• Gerlinde Habler,
• Rainer Abart,
• Alexey S. Cherevan,
• Dominik Eder,
• Maxime Blatter,
• Fabian Fischer,
• Jannik C. Meyer,
• Dmitry K. Polyushkin and
• Wolfgang Waldhauser

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1115–1126, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.113

• fabricated by means of optical lithography and standard contact deposition routes. As the global back gate to the FET devices the highly doped Si wafer under the 90 nm SiO2 film, onto which the MoS2 had been deposited, was employed. Electrical transport characteristics have been tested by measuring the drain

• (FET) devices with rectangular and circular contacts have been made. The drain/source contacts were defined by means of optical lithography. The Ti/Au (5/50 nm) contact pads have been fabricated by means of thermal evaporation. As the global back gate to the FET devices the highly doped Si wafer under

The integration of graphene into microelectronic devices

• Guenther Ruhl,
• Sebastian Wittmann,
• Matthias Koenig and
• Daniel Neumaier

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1056–1064, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.107

• contamination of graphene by following lithography steps. One method utilizes a one-step plasma-etch process with low selectivity to the underlying dielectric substrate to etch the encapsulation/hardmask layer and the underlying graphene simultaneously. An alternative approach applies two consecutive steps to

Assembly of metallic nanoparticle arrays on glass via nanoimprinting and thin-film dewetting

• Sun-Kyu Lee,
• Sori Hwang,
• Yoon-Kee Kim and
• Yong-Jun Oh

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1049–1055, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.106

• , high-resolution lithography techniques – such as electron beam lithography (EBL) or laser interference lithography (LIL) – with a conventional multistep etching process on a silicon wafer are still required to fabricate templates with nanostructured surface topographies that determine the features of

• the dewetted nanoparticles [1][12][13][14][15]. These complicated processing steps for prepatterned templates critically restrict extensive application of the thin-film dewetting technique. Furthermore, lithography techniques based on silicon wafers have limitations when the template must also serve

• as a functional layer. Thus, the applicability of a self-assembly technique that uses dewetting largely depends on how it can be combined with appropriate template materials that have both functionality and dewettability. In this regard, nanoimprint lithography (NIL) is expected to be an effective

CVD transfer-free graphene for sensing applications

• Chiara Schiattarella,
• Sten Vollebregt,
• Tiziana Polichetti,
• Brigida Alfano,
• Ettore Massera,
• Maria Lucia Miglietta,
• Girolamo Di Francia and
• Pasqualina Maria Sarro

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 1015–1022, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.102

• of conductometric devices in which multilayer graphene films have been directly synthesized on insulating SiO2 substrates by means of a transfer-free CVD method mediated by Mo. The pre-patterning of the Mo layer allows the graphene to be shaped in the desired form by means of standard lithography

Near-field surface plasmon field enhancement induced by rippled surfaces

• Mario D’Acunto,
• Francesco Fuso,
• Ruggero Micheletto,
• Makoto Naruse,
• Francesco Tantussi and
• Maria Allegrini

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 956–967, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.97

• -down lithographic techniques such as electron beam lithography and nanosphere lithography [22][23][24]. In this paper, we simulate the conditions of SPP field enhancement and the formation of dark and hot, or bright spots, for a wide variety of patterned surfaces. The patterned surfaces are numerically

Synthesis of coaxial nanotubes of polyaniline and poly(hydroxyethyl methacrylate) by oxidative/initiated chemical vapor deposition

• Alper Balkan,
• Efe Armagan and
• Gozde Ozaydin Ince

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 872–882, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.89

• -beam evaporation, conventional lithography with a shadow mask was used to create a pattern for the electrodes. The photoresist AZ 5214 E (Merck GmbH), the developer AZ 726 (MIF) (Merck GmbH) and deionized water (stopper) were used for the lithography. After the e-beam evaporation, samples were annealed

Relationships between chemical structure, mechanical properties and materials processing in nanopatterned organosilicate fins

• Gheorghe Stan,
• Richard S. Gates,
• Qichi Hu,
• Kevin Kjoller,
• Craig Prater,
• Kanwal Jit Singh,
• Ebony Mays and
• Sean W. King

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 863–871, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.88

• layer and a hard mask. Standard 193 nm immersion lithography and etching techniques were utilized to form a grid pattern in the first backbone layer. A spacer dielectric was then deposited over the backbone grid and the backbone material was selectively removed. Standard plasma-etching techniques were

3D Nanoprinting via laser-assisted electron beam induced deposition: growth kinetics, enhanced purity, and electrical resistivity

• Brett B. Lewis,
• Robert Winkler,
• Xiahan Sang,
• Pushpa R. Pudasaini,
• Michael G. Stanford,
• Harald Plank,
• Raymond R. Unocic,
• Jason D. Fowlkes and
• Philip D. Rack

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 801–812, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.83

• combination of photolithography and electron beam lithography (EBL) were used to produce the two-contact pads with a spacing of 500 nm. An initial set of gold electrical contacts were patterned using photolithography and deposited with a thickness of 100 nm. A 3 nm titanium adhesion layer was deposited, prior

Surface improvement of organic photoresists using a near-field-dependent etching method

• Felix J. Brandenburg,
• Tomohiro Okamoto,
• Hiroshi Saito,
• Benjamin Leuschel,
• Olivier Soppera and
• Takashi Yatsui

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2017, 8, 784–788, doi:10.3762/bjnano.8.81

• feature size year-by-year in order to sustain Moore’s Law [3][4], new processing techniques [5] as well as materials [6] are constantly being explored. One important criterion for new materials and techniques is their SR value, and the reduction of the SR is of great interest for high-end lithography

• and play an important role in high-end integrated circuit (IC) chip production. Since the quality of IC semiconductors is directly dependent on their SR, an improvement in the structure of the photoresist during the lithography process could significantly improve the quality of the semiconductor end

• was prepared using interference lithography. Specifically, the chemically amplified resist (EPIC 2096 ArF Photoresist) with an absorption edge of 310 nm was used. To observe the wavelength dependence, the continuous-wave (CW) laser sources used in these experiments were: (1) He–Cd laser (325 nm; 3.81