Sub-20 nm laser ablation for lithographic dry development.

Pattern collapse of small or high aspect ratio lines during traditional wet development is a major challenge for miniaturization in nanolithography. Here we report on a new dry process which combines high resolution resist exposure with selective laser ablation to achieve high resolution with high aspect ratios. Using a low power 532 nm laser, we dry develop a normally negative tone methyl acetoxy calix(6)arene in positive tone to reveal sub-20 nm half-pitch features in a ∼100 nm film at aspect ratios unattainable with conventional development with ablation time of 1-2 s per laser pixel (∼600 nm diameter spot). We also demonstrate superior negative tone wet development by combining electron beam exposure with subsequent laser exposure at a non-ablative threshold that requires far less electron beam exposure doses than traditional wet development.

Nonperturbative visualization of nanoscale plasmonic field distributions via photon localization microscopy.

We demonstrate the nonperturbative use of diffraction-limited optics and photon localization microscopy to visualize the controlled nanoscale shifts of zeptoliter mode volumes within plasmonic nanostructures. Unlike tip- or coating-based methods for mapping near fields, these measurements do not affect the electromagnetic properties of the structure being investigated. We quantify the local field manipulation capabilities of asymmetric bowtie antennas, in agreement with theoretical calculations. The photon-limited localization accuracy of nanoscale mode positions is determined for many of the measured devices to be within a 95% confidence interval of +/-2.5 nm. This accuracy also enables us to characterize the effects of nm-scale fabrication irregularities on local plasmonic mode distributions.

Functional plasmonic antenna scanning probes fabricated by induced-deposition mask lithography.

We have fabricated plasmonic bowtie antennae on the apex of silicon atomic-force microscope cantilever tips that enhance the local silicon Raman scattering intensity by approximately 4 x 10(4) when excited near the antenna resonance. The antennae were fabricated using a novel method, induced-deposition mask lithography (IDML), capable of creating high-purity metallic nanostructures on non-planar, non-conducting substrates with high repeatability. IDML involves electron-beam-induced deposition of a W or SiO(x) hard mask on the material to be pattered, here a 20 nm Au film, followed by Ar ion etching to remove the mask and the unmasked gold, leaving a chemically pure Au bowtie antenna. Antenna function and reproducibility was confirmed by comparing Raman spectra for excitation polarized parallel and perpendicular to the antenna axis, as well as by dark-field spectroscopic characterization of resonant modes. The field enhancement of these plasmonic AFM antennae tips was comparable with antennae produced by electron-beam lithography on flat substrates.

Self-collimation of light over millimeter-scale distance in a quasi-zero-average-index metamaterial.

Inspired by the concept of complementary media, we experimentally demonstrate that an engineered metamaterial made of alternating, stripe layers of negatively refracting (photonic crystals) and positively refracting (air) materials strongly collimates a beam of near-infrared light. This quasi-zero-average-index metamaterial fully preserves the beam spot size throughout the sample for a light beam traveling through the metamaterial a distance of 2 mm-more than 1000 times the input wavelength lambda=1.55 microm. These results demonstrate the first explicit experimental verification of optical antimatter as proposed by Pendry and Ramakrishna [J. Pendry and S. Ramakrishna, J. Phys. Condens. Matter 15, 6345 (2003)10.1088/0953-8984/15/37/004], using two complementary media in which each n(eff)=-1 layer appears to annihilate an equal thickness layer of air.

Sub-38 nm resolution tabletop microscopy with 13 nm wavelength laser light.

We have acquired images with a spatial resolution better than 38 nm by using a tabletop microscope that combines 13 nm wavelength light from a high-brightness tabletop laser and Fresnel zone plate optics. These results open a gateway to the development of compact and widely available extreme-ultraviolet imaging tools capable of inspecting samples in a variety of environments with a 15-20 nm spatial resolution and a picosecond time resolution.

Interferometer-controlled scanning transmission X-ray microscopes at the Advanced Light Source.

Two new soft X-ray scanning transmission microscopes located at the Advanced Light Source (ALS) have been designed, built and commissioned. Interferometer control implemented in both microscopes allows the precise measurement of the transverse position of the zone plate relative to the sample. Long-term positional stability and compensation for transverse displacement during translations of the zone plate have been achieved. The interferometer also provides low-distortion orthogonal x, y imaging. Two different control systems have been developed: a digital control system using standard VXI components at beamline 7.0, and a custom feedback system based on PC AT boards at beamline 5.3.2. Both microscopes are diffraction limited with the resolution set by the quality of the zone plates. Periodic features with 30 nm half period can be resolved with a zone plate that has a 40 nm outermost zone width. One microscope is operating at an undulator beamline (7.0), while the other is operating at a novel dedicated bending-magnet beamline (5.3.2), which is designed specifically to illuminate the microscope. The undulator beamline provides count rates of the order of tens of MHz at high-energy resolution with photon energies of up to about 1000 eV. Although the brightness of a bending-magnet source is about four orders of magnitude smaller than that of an undulator source, photon statistics limited operation with intensities in excess of 3 MHz has been achieved at high energy resolution and high spatial resolution. The design and performance of these microscopes are described.