Aligned nanowires and nanodots by directed block copolymer assembly

Abstract

The directed self-assembly of block copolymers (BCPs) is a promising route to generate highly ordered arrays of sub-10 nm features. Ultradense arrays of a monolayer of spherical microdomains or cylindrical microdomains oriented parallel to the surface have been produced where the lateral ordering is guided by surface patterning and the lattice defined by the patterning can be commensurate or incommensurate with the natural period of the BCP. Commensurability between the two can be used to elegantly manipulate the lateral ordering and orientation of the BCP microdomains so as to form well-aligned arrays of 1D nanowires or 2D addressable nanodots. No modification of the substrate surface, aside from the patterning, was used, making the influence of lattice mismatch and pattern amplification on the size, shape and pitch of the BCP microdomains more transparent. A skew angle between incommensurate lattices, defining a stretching or compression of the BCP chains to compensate for the lattice mismatch, is presented.

Rectangular Symmetry Morphologies in a Topographically Templated Block Copolymer

“…[1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18] This method has been used to produce large-area defect-free lamellar, cylindrical, or spherical microdomain patterns through chemical [1][2][3][4][5][6] or topographical [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] templating. However, the formation of complex patterns with multiple morphologies in one BCP film (e.g.…”

A facile route to regular and nonregular dot arrays by integrating nanoimprint lithography with sphere‐forming block copolymer directed self‐assembly

“…In this article, high topography means the feature height in prepatterns is comparable with or larger than L o , whereas low topography means the feature height is significantly smaller than L o . Different from early reports on combination of nanoimprint and block copolymers using 1D high‐topography imprint prepatterns, 2D high‐topography resist prepatterns are first created via nanoimprint lithography and characterized by SEM and AFM to obtain detailed pattern information such as feature size d 1 , feature spacing L 1 , and topography height H 1 . Specifically, d 1 is controlled to be ≤ L o to ensure only one block copolymer domain within each prepatterned feature such that the locations of all block copolymer nanodomains are predefined by resist prepatterns.…”

Generating Aligned Micellar Nanowire Arrays by Dewetting of Micropatterned Surfaces

“…Synthesis of the Ultralong PS‐b‐PEO Wormlike Micelles : Amphiphilic block‐copolymers can self‐assemble into cylindrical structures under certain conditions (above critical micelle concentration and critical micelle temperature) through the single or multi (immiscible) solvent process . Typically, the self‐assembly is driven by the hydrogen bridges, polarity, or ionic interactions between the two joined dissimilar polymers .…”