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Stamping Techniques for Micro and Nanofabrication: Methods and Applications

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Springer Handbook of Nanotechnology

Part of the book series: Springer Handbooks ((SHB))

Abstract

This chapter highlights some recent advances in high resolution printing methods, in which a “stamp” forms a pattern of “ink” on the surface it contacts. It focuses on two approaches whose capabilities, level of development, and demonstrated applications indicate a strong potential for widespread use, especially in areas where conventional methods are unsuitable. The first of these, known as microcontact printing, uses a high resolution rubber stamp to print patterns of chemical inks, mainly those that lead to the formation of organic self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). These printed SAMs can be used either as resists in selective wet etching, or as templates in selective deposition to form structures of a variety of materials. The other approach, referred to as nanotransfer printing, uses similar high resolution stamps, but ones inked with solid thin film materials. In this case, SAMs, or other types of surface chemistries, bond these films to a substrate that the stamp contacts. The material transfer that results upon removal of the stamp forms a pattern in the geometry of the relief features, in a purely additive fashion. In addition to providing detailed descriptions of these micro/nanoprinting techniques, this chapter illustrates their use in some areas where these methods may provide attractive alternatives to more established lithographic methods. The demonstrator applications span fields as diverse as biotechnology (intravascular stents), fiber optics (tunable fiber devices), nanoanalytical chemistry (high resolution nuclear magnetic resonance), plastic electronics (paper-like displays), and integrated optics (distributed feedback lasers). The growing interest in nanoscience and nanotechnology motivates research and the development of new methods that can be used for nanofabricating the relevant test structures or devices. The attractive capabilities of the techniques described here, together with the interesting and subtle materials science, chemistry, and physics associated with them, make this a promising area for basic and applied study.

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Abbreviations

μCP:

microcontact printing

DBR:

distributed Bragg reflector

DFB:

distributed feedback

ITO:

indium tin oxide

MIM:

metal/insulator/metal

MPTMS:

mercaptopropyltrimethoxysilane

PDMS:

polydimethylsiloxane

PECVD:

plasma enhanced CVD

PET:

poly(ethylene terephthalate)

SAM:

self-assembling monolayer

SEM:

scanning electron microscope/microscopy

nTP:

nanotransfer printing

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Acknowledgements

The author extends his deepest thanks to all of the collaborators who contributed the work described here.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Illinois, 1304 W. Green Street, 61801, Urbana, IL, USA

    John A. Rogers Prof. Dr.

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  1. John A. Rogers Prof. Dr.
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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Nanotribology Laboratory for Information Storage and MEMS/NEMS, The Ohio State University, 206 W. 18th Avenue, 43210-1107, Columbus, OH, USA

    Bharat Bhushan Prof.

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© 2004 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Rogers, J.A. (2004). Stamping Techniques for Micro and Nanofabrication: Methods and Applications. In: Bhushan, B. (eds) Springer Handbook of Nanotechnology. Springer Handbooks. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-29838-X_6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-29838-X_6

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-540-01218-4

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-540-29838-0

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