Fabrication of buried nanostructures by atomic layer deposition

Abstract

We present a method for fabricating buried nanostructures by growing a dielectric cover layer on a corrugated surface profile by atomic layer deposition of TiO2. Selecting appropriate process parameters, the conformal growth of TiO2 results in a smooth, nearly flat-top surface of the structure. Such a hard surface can be easily cleaned without damage, making the nanostructure reusable after contamination. The technique has wide applicability in resonance-domain diffractive optics and in realization of quasi-planar metamaterials. We discuss design issues of such optical elements and demonstrate the method by fabricating narrow-band spectral filters based on the guided-mode resonance effect. These elements have strong potential for, e.g., sensing applications in harsh conditions.

Conical Nanotubes Synthesized by Atomic Layer Deposition of Al2O3, TiO2, and SiO2 in Etched Ion-Track Nanochannels

“…Surface coating by atomic layer deposition (ALD) has the potential to significantly widen the technological and scientific applications of etched ion-track membranes with highly oriented and monodisperse channels by enabling a controlled tailoring of both size and chemistry of the nanochannels. ALD is based on sequential and self-terminating gas–solid surface reactions of typically two gaseous reactants and has been successfully applied to coat complex three-dimensional topographies with homogeneous films of known composition [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 ]. The self-limiting nature of the chemical reactions provides excellent thickness control, even in deeply embedded surfaces such as the inner wall of nanopores and nanochannels.…”

Poisson’s Ratio of the f.c.c. Hard Sphere Crystals with Periodically Stacked (001)-Nanolayers of Hard Spheres of Another Diameter

“…Not long ago, such nanoscale models were out of reach in the sense of preparation and, hence, also for practical applications. However, recent development of methods for nanostructure fabrication allows one to manufacture quasiplanar metamaterials at nanoscale, e.g., by atomic layer deposition techniques [ 85 ]. This allows one for fabrication of nanolayer [ 85 ] or nanowire [ 86 , 87 ] metamaterials.…”

“…However, recent development of methods for nanostructure fabrication allows one to manufacture quasiplanar metamaterials at nanoscale, e.g., by atomic layer deposition techniques [ 85 ]. This allows one for fabrication of nanolayer [ 85 ] or nanowire [ 86 , 87 ] metamaterials. Therefore, it is meaningful to search for such modifications at the nanoscale that lead to the decrease of Poisson’s ratio.…”

Dichroic Optical Diode Transmission in Two Dislocated Parallel Metallic Gratings

“…The thickness of the optical diode structure proposed in this paper is as small as 160 nm. With the development of nanofabrication technologies, many methods can be applied to the fabrication of metallic gratings structures, such as ultraviolet nanoimprint lithography [32], laser-direct-writing lithography [33], and electron-beam lithography [34]. The optical diode character is independent of the incident intensity.…”