Patterning of metal oxide nanostructures with precisely controlled geometries and spacings can play an important role in the improvement of sensors for gas detection. Titanium oxide thin films were deposited on oxidized silicon substrates by reactive magnetron sputtering at room temperature. Patterning of TiO2 nanostructures was conducted by electron beam lithography combined with plasma etching. It was found that for 120 nm-thick TiO2 nanostructure formation, HSQ e-beam resists and Cr films prove to be suitable mask materials. Experimental results showed that the size of TiO2 nanostructures depends mainly on the e-beam lithography process and they can be controlled by the design geometry and the exposure dose. TiO2 nanostructures with a minimal diameter of 70 nm and spacing of 200 nm were successfully fabricated by ICP etching in CF4/Ar plasma through negative e-beam resist HSQ.

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In this article we describe the electron-beam direct-write (EBDW) lithography process for the AZ 5214E photoresist which is, besides its sensitivity to UV radiation, sensitive also to electrons. An adapted process flow is provided. At the same time we examine the resistance of this resist to RIE and its suitability as an etch-mask for etching thin Ag layers in N 2 plasma. A comparison with several chosen resists (PMMA, ma-2405, ma-N 1402, SU-8 2000 is provided.K e y w o r d s: AZ 5214E resist,

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In this article we present results from lithography experiments on PMMA (positive tone), and HSQ resists carried out on the ZBA variable shaped e-beam pattern generators. In order to obtain the necessary information needed for the optimization of the exposure control Point Spread Function PSF, several lithography tests are mentioned. The carried out measurements and analysis of the results help us in obtaining important information about the resists and exposure processes and enable us to practically verify the suggested methods of parameters extraction for a reliable exposure model. IntroductionPrimary structures that are required in microtechnology are usually realized by means of projection photolithographic methods through a mask using image reduction. One of nonoptical imaging processes using charged particles is the Electron Beam Direct Write lithography (EBDW), which enables to overcome the limiting diffraction in the photolithography and considerably increases the resolution limit as well as the image fidelity in the high-end mask and/or chip fabrication. The final resolution in this technique is limited by beam parameters and by the electron interaction processes in the resist/substrate stack. However, EBDW suffers from the so called proximity [1] effects that limit the resolution [2], and so proximity-effect corrections of the exposure data based on experimental measurements [3] should be incorporated. To achieve this, a method which optimizes the Point Spread Function (PSF) for the proximity effect correction must be implemented especially in the case of large and complex chips [4].With modern e-beam writing tools, the resolution and throughput of the electron beam lithography is often limited by the resists used in the process. Resists for advanced maskmaking with high-voltage e-beam writing tools have undergone dramatic changes over the last three decades. However, new materials are developed for nanopatterning and detailed knowledge of resist characteristics is needed due to diverse application of nanolithography. ExperimentalIn this paper we present results from EBDW lithography experiments which have been carried out on the ZBA 10 (30keV mode, thermal emission cathode), ZBA 21 (20keV) and ZBA 23 (20 and 40keV modes, LaB 6 cathode) variable shaped e-beam pattern generators, respectively. Positive-as well as negative-tone e-beam resists were chosen for these experiments, and in order to obtain the necessary information needed for the optimization of the exposure control PSF, some lithography tests were used and the results taken from these experiments are presented.

The novel electromagnetic field principle of a wireless measurement of the small displacement (forces) enables its utilization in a wide range of applications. This paper describes the design and fabrication of the physical model of a one-axis force sensor, but together shows possible applications of the proposed wireless electromagnetic field principle for the compact compliant mechanisms or for tiny insects monitoring.