Assembly of sub-10-nm block copolymer patterns with mixed morphology and period using electron irradiation and solvent annealing

Nano Lett. 2011 Nov 9;11(11):5079-84. doi: 10.1021/nl203445h. Epub 2011 Oct 19.

Abstract

Block copolymer self-assembly generates patterns with periodicity in the ∼10-100 nm range and is increasingly recognized as a route to lithographic patterning beyond the resolution of photolithography. Block copolymers naturally produce periodic patterns with a morphology and length-scale determined by the molecular architecture, and considerable research has been carried out to extend the range of patterns that can be produced from a given block copolymer, but the ability to control the period of the pattern over a wide range and to achieve complex structures with mixed morphologies from a given block copolymer is limited. Here we show how patterns consisting of coexisting sub-10-nm spheres and cylinders and sphere patterns with a range of periods can be created using a combination of serial solvent anneal processes and electron-beam irradiation of selected areas of a film of poly(styrene-block-dimethylsiloxane). These techniques extend the capabilities of block copolymer lithography, enabling complex aperiodic nanoscale patterns to be formed from a single block copolymer thin film.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Crystallization / methods*
  • Electrons
  • Hardness
  • Materials Testing
  • Nanostructures / chemistry*
  • Nanostructures / ultrastructure*
  • Particle Size
  • Polymers / chemistry*
  • Solvents / chemistry*
  • Surface Properties

Substances

  • Polymers
  • Solvents