Efficient methods of nanoimprint stamp cleaning based on imprint self-cleaning effect.

Nanoimprint lithography (NIL) is a nonconventional lithographic technique that promises low-cost, high-throughput patterning of structures with sub-10 nm resolution. Contamination of nanoimprint stamps is one of the key obstacles to industrialize the NIL technology. Here, we report two efficient approaches for removal of typical contamination of particles and residual resist from stamps: thermal and ultraviolet (UV) imprinting cleaning-both based on the self-cleaning effect of imprinting process. The contaminated stamps were imprinted onto polymer substrates and after demolding, they were treated with an organic solvent. The images of the stamp before and after the cleaning processes show that the two cleaning approaches can effectively remove contamination from stamps without destroying the stamp structures. The contact angles of the stamp before and after the cleaning processes indicate that the cleaning methods do not significantly degrade the anti-sticking layer. The cleaning processes reported in this work could also be used for substrate cleaning.

Axonal outgrowth on nano-imprinted patterns.

Nanotechnology has provided methods to fabricate surface patterns with features down to a few nm. If cells or cell processes exhibit contact guidance in response to such small patterns is an interesting question and could be pertinent for many applications. In the present study we investigated if axonal outgrowth was affected by nano-printed patterns in polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA)-covered silicon chips. To this end adult mouse sympathetic and sensory ganglia were mounted in Matrigel on the chips close to the nano-patterns. The patterns consisted of parallel grooves with depths of 300 nm and varying widths of 100-400 nm. The distance between two adjacent grooves was 100-1600 nm. The chips were cultured in medium containing 25 ng/ml of nerve growth factor to stimulate axonal outgrowth. After 1 week of incubation, axonal outgrowth was investigated by immunocytochemistry or scanning electron microscopy. Axons displayed contact guidance on all patterns. Furthermore, we found that the nerve cell processes preferred to grow on ridge edges and elevations in the patterns rather than in grooves, a seemingly claustrophobic behavior. We conclude that axons of peripheral neurons might be guided by nanopatterns on PMMA when the lateral features are 100 nm or larger. The present results can be utilized for nerve regenerating scaffolds or the construction of a stable, high-resolution electronic interface to neurons, which is required for future brain machine interfaces.