A novel 2D silicon nano-mold fabrication technique for linear nanochannels over a 4 inch diameter substrate

A novel low-cost 2D silicon nano-mold fabrication technique was developed based on Cu inclined-deposition and Ar(+) (argon ion) etching. With this technique, sub-100 nm 2D (two dimensional) nano-channels can be etched economically over the whole area of a 4 inch n-type <100> silicon wafer. The fabricating process consists of only 4 steps, UV (Ultraviolet) lithography, inclined Cu deposition, Ar(+) sputter etching, and photoresist & Cu removing. During this nano-mold fabrication process, we investigated the influence of the deposition angle on the width of the nano-channels and the effect of Ar(+) etching time on their depth. Post-etching measurements showed the accuracy of the nanochannels over the whole area: the variation in width is 10%, in depth it is 11%. However, post-etching measurements also showed the accuracy of the nanochannels between chips: the variation in width is 2%, in depth it is 5%. With this newly developed technology, low-cost and large scale 2D nano-molds can be fabricated, which allows commercial manufacturing of nano-components over large areas.