Evidence of meniscus interface transport in dip-pen nanolithography: An annular diffusion model

Nafday, Omkar A.; Vaughn, Mark W.; Weeks, Brandon L.

doi:10.1063/1.2354487

Cited by 42 publications

(38 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…These properties finally decide the ink transport dependence on parameters influencing the meniscus. 44,64 Phospholipids are amphiphiles and thus their characteristics with respect to polarity fall between those of nonpolar complexes and salts. 63 However, the fact that the ink is 'water compatible' (i.e.…”

Section: 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

A diffusive ink transport model for lipid dip-pen nanolithography

Urtizberea

Hirtz

2015

Nanoscale

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Despite diverse applications, phospholipid membrane stacks generated by dip-pen nanolithography (DPN) still lack a thorough and systematic characterization that elucidates the whole ink transport process from writing to surface spreading, with the aim of better controlling the resulting feature size and resolution. We report a quantitative analysis and modeling of the dependence of lipid DPN features (area, height and volume) on dwell time and relative humidity. The ink flow rate increases with humidity in agreement with meniscus size growth, determining the overall feature size. The observed time dependence indicates the existence of a balance between surface spreading and the ink flow rate that promotes differences in concentration at the meniscus/substrate interface. Feature shape is controlled by the substrate surface energy. The results are analyzed within a modified model for the ink transport of diffusive inks. At any humidity the dependence of the area spread on the dwell time shows two diffusion regimes: at short dwell times growth is controlled by meniscus diffusion while at long dwell times surface diffusion governs the process. The critical point for the switch of regime depends on the humidity.

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Section: 1mentioning

confidence: 99%

A diffusive ink transport model for lipid dip-pen nanolithography

Urtizberea

Hirtz

2015

Nanoscale

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“…Confidence in any fabrication technique is built upon the ability to faithfully reproduce the user's design. The mechanism of DPN transport of alkanethiol molecules from tip to substrate is well‐studied . In molecular ink DPN, control of feature‐size, and therefore pattern fidelity, arises from an empirical understanding of feature growth over a range of “dwell times” for dot printing or “write‐speeds” for line writing .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Ink‐on‐Probe Hydrodynamics in Atomic Force Microscope Deposition of Liquid Inks

O’Connell

Higgins

Sullivan

et al. 2014

Small

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The controlled deposition of attolitre volumes of liquids may engender novel applications such as soft, nano-tailored cell-material interfaces, multi-plexed nano-arrays for high throughput screening of biomolecular interactions, and localized delivery of reagents to reactions confined at the nano-scale. Although the deposition of small organic molecules from an AFM tip, known as dip-pen nanolithography (DPN), is being continually refined, AFM deposition of liquid inks is not well understood, and is often fraught with inconsistent deposition rates. In this work, the variation in feature-size over long term printing experiments for four model inks of varying viscosity is examined. A hierarchy of recurring phenomena is uncovered and there are attributed to ink movement and reorganisation along the cantilever itself. Simple analytical approaches to model these effects, as well as a method to gauge the degree of ink loading using the cantilever resonance frequency, are described. In light of the conclusions, the various parameters which need to be controlled in order to achieve uniform printing are dicussed. This work has implications for the nanopatterning of viscous liquids and hydrogels, encompassing ink development, the design of probes and printing protocols.

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“…[7][8][9] Analysis of the water meniscus formed by capillary condensation between an AFM tip and a surface is also of great relevance for dip-pen nanolithography, which is now a widely used technique for depositing materials at the nanoscale. [10][11][12][13][14] For the ink transport through a liquid meniscus, the size of the meniscus is critical for predictable results. [15][16][17][18] An important technique for which the formation of the meniscus is crucial is the fountain pen 19 in which ink is supplied through a nanochannel to the tip.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The profile of a capillary liquid bridge between solid surfaces

Honschoten

Tas

Elwenspoek

2010

American Journal of Physics

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Scanning force microscopy, such as atomic force microscopy ͑AFM͒ is complicated by the capillary force of a water meniscus formed in air between the probe tip and the sample. This small liquid bridge between the hydrophilic sample and the sharp AFM tip can be formed by capillary condensation from the vapor phase. We present an analytical model that describes the shape of the meniscus in which the pressure difference across the curved liquid air interface is taken into account. The analysis is based on a minimization of the liquid surface energy, together with the boundary condition of a given pressure drop across the surface as determined by the relative humidity of the vapor. The capillary forces that the wetting liquid exerts on the AFM tip are derived from the model. The resulting expressions can be used to describe arbitrary axial symmetric liquid air interfaces with nonzero total curvature, such as fluid bridges between two surfaces and droplets under a uniform force. The model illustrates some of the basic concepts of capillarity, such as surface tension forces and interfacial pressure drops.

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Evidence of meniscus interface transport in dip-pen nanolithography: An annular diffusion model

Cited by 42 publications

References 24 publications

A diffusive ink transport model for lipid dip-pen nanolithography

A diffusive ink transport model for lipid dip-pen nanolithography

Ink‐on‐Probe Hydrodynamics in Atomic Force Microscope Deposition of Liquid Inks

The profile of a capillary liquid bridge between solid surfaces

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