Gas-assisted electron-beam-induced nanopatterning of high-quality titanium oxide

Electron-beam-induced deposition of titanium oxide nanopatterns is described. The precursor is titanium tetra-isopropoxide, delivered to the deposition point through a needle and mixed with oxygen at the same point via a flow through a separate needle. The depositions are free of residual carbon and have an EDX determined stoichiometry of TiO2.2. High resolution transmission electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy studies reveal an amorphous structure of the fabricated titanium oxide. Ellipsometric characterization of the deposited material reveals a refractive index of 2.2-2.4 RIU in the spectral range of 500-1700 nm and a very low extinction coefficient (lower than 10(-6) in the range of 400-1700 nm), which is consistent with high quality titanium oxide. The electrical resistivity of the titanium oxide patterned with this new process is in the range of 10-40 GΩ cm and the measured breakdown field is in the range of 10-70 V μm(-1). The fabricated nanopatterns are important for a variety of applications, including field-effect transistors, memory devices, MEMS, waveguide structures, bio- and chemical sensors.

Gas-assisted electron-beam-induced nanopatterning of high-quality Si-based insulator

An oxygen-assisted electron-beam-induced deposition (EBID) process, in which an oxygen flow and the vapor phase of the precursor, tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS), are both mixed and delivered through a single needle, is described. The optical properties of the SiO(2+δ) (- 0.04 ≤ δ ≤ +0.28) are comparable to fused silica. The electrical resistivity of both single-needle and double-needle SiO(2+δ) are comparable (greater than 7 GΩ cm) and a measured breakdown field is greater than 400 V μm(-1). Compared to the double-needle process the advantage of the single-needle technique is the ease of alignment and the proximity to the deposition location, which facilitates fabrication of complex 3D structures for nanophotonics, photovoltaics, micro- and nano-electronics applications.