The objective of this research is to develop new techniques for creating patterns with nanometer dimensions on technologically important substrates, such as silicon, gallium nitride, and diamond. Almost all micro- and nano-scale patterning is currently carried out using photolithography, a process well suited for high-throughput parallel printing of small surfaces such as computer chips. This technique, however, requires an enormous investment in expensive and complex instrumentation and cannot pattern large surfaces. Soft lithography, a technique in which molecular "inks" are transferred to metallic surfaces from rubber stamps, is an alternative to photolithography but is applicable only to a small range of non-technologically relevant materials, such as gold and silicon oxide. This project will develop a universal soft lithographic method for patterning virtually any metal or semiconductor surface. In this approach, a highly ordered uniform monolayer is placed on a metal or semiconductor surface. In a second step, an elastomeric stamp bearing a catalyst active against the initial monolayer is used to create patterns on the surface in places where the stamp contacts the surface.
The work will have an enormous impact on many areas of science and engineering, including nanotechnology, material science, electrical engineering, chemistry, biochemistry, and physics. The ability to pattern technologically relevant substrates will facilitate the development of new sensors, permit the fabrication of novel arrays of cells and biological molecules for the rapid identification of drugs, and allow the construction of 3-dimensional objects with nanoscopic dimensions on virtually any surface. The work will involve both graduate and undergraduate researchers, who will study synthetic chemistry, catalysis and surface characterization.
