Highly transparent poly(glycidyl methacrylate-co-acryloisobutyl POSS) for 100 μm-thick submicron patterns with an aspect ratio over 100

Abstract

This is the first report on the fabrication of defect-free submicron structures with more than 100 μm thickness and an aspect ratio over 100. Highly transparent poly(glycidyl methacrylate-co-acryloisobutyl POSS) (PGP) was synthesized via radical polymerization. The mechanical properties of the PGP submicron structure displayed a Young's modulus of 6.09 GPa and a hardness of 0.16 GPa, 4.2 and 8 times, respectively, than those of SU8 nanopatterns. These enhancements enable the utilization of ultrathick 2D-/3D-submicron structures as an ideal platform for microelectromechanical systems, big data storage systems, energy devices, etc.

UV-Nanoimprinting Lithography Photoresists with No Photoinitiator and Low Polymerization Shrinkage

“…13 Therefore, decreasing the photoresist's polymerization shrinkage during the photopolymerization reaction is still a big challenge. 14 During the photopolymerization process of the photoresist, as the van der Waals force between monomers changes to a covalent bond force, the distance between monomers is reduced, and thus the phenomenon of photopolymerization shrinkage of the photoresist is inescapable. 15 This undesirable polymerization shrinkage will lead to distortion of the transfer patterns of the photoresist.…”

“…UV-nanoimprinting lithography (UV-NIL), having the advantages of high throughput, good resolution, and low manufacturing cost, as well as room-temperature operation, is regarded as the new next-generation lithography technique and has been receiving increasing attention in recent years. − However, polymerization shrinkage of the photoresist used for UV-NIL is still regarded as a critical problem which hinders a wide array of applications of UV-NIL technology, because it severely impacts the nanoimprint patterns’ resolution . Therefore, decreasing the photoresist’s polymerization shrinkage during the photopolymerization reaction is still a big challenge . During the photopolymerization process of the photoresist, as the van der Waals force between monomers changes to a covalent bond force, the distance between monomers is reduced, and thus the phenomenon of photopolymerization shrinkage of the photoresist is inescapable .…”