Design of photomodifiable material systems for maskless patterning of functional ceramic and metallic materials at multiple length scales

• Main Author: Alabi, Taiwo Raphael
• Other Authors: Das, Suman
• Language: en_US
• Published: Georgia Institute of Technology 2014
• Subjects: Reactive ion etching; Positive tone resist; Silicon nanowires; Block copolymers; Laser interference ablation; Negative tone resist; Silicon compounds; Photoresists; Masks (Electronics); Photopolymerization
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/1853/51709

Silicon and silicon-based materials have been investigated for the fabrication of electronic, optoelectronic, solar, and structural/mechanical devices. To enable the continuous use of silicon-based materials for next generation device applications, new and inexpensive ways of fabricating features of silicon, and silica-based materials are needed. This dissertation investigates: 1) novel techniques for the fabrication of silica and silicon nanofeatures with potential application in the electronics and optoelectronics industry; 2) new designs of photomodifiable material systems (resists) for maskless patterning of silica filled composites for structural/mechanical applications. Sub-micron and nano-scaled features were fabricated onto silicon and silicon oxide substrates using a technique combining block copolymers and laser interference ablation. The sacrificial block copolymers are loaded with metallic salt precursors and patterned with a UV laser to generate device-oriented nanofeatures. New photopolymerizable material systems (negative tone resists) were developed based on curcumin photosensitizer and an epoxy-acrylate, vinylether, and vinylether-acrylate silica¬-loaded material systems. The cationic and radical mechanisms employed by the monomeric systems under a high vapor pressure mercury lamp source were investigated with several materials characterization techniques.