Block copolymer based nanostructures: Materials, processes, and applications to electronics

Abstract

Materials, processes, and applications to electronics based on block copolymer nanostructures have been reported. Block copolymers are a specific class of copolymer (polymers comprising more than one chemically distinct monomer) where the different monomers are not distributed within the polymer chain in random or alternating fashion but instead are grouped in discrete homogeneous sections of the chain. The combination of semiconductor processing technologies such as RIE with block copolymer nanopatterning opens new possibilities for fabricating nanostructures useful for functional devices. The diblock material was formulated such that the a real density and the hole diameters of the final pattern and the material etch properties were well suited for the following image transfer step. Polymer self-assembly affords a means to create immense numbers of nanoscale features in a simple, rapid, and inexpensive process where the spatial scale ultimately is controlled by chemical synthesis of macromolecules rather than by complex and costly tooling.