Process integration of self-assembled polymer templates into silicon nanofabrication

Self-assembled diblock copolymer thin films are used as sacrificial layers for the transfer of dense nanoscale patterns into more robust materials. We detail the processes used to achieve highly uniform nanoporous dielectric films, high-aspect-ratio nanotextured silicon, silicon nitride dot arrays, silicon pillar arrays, and silicon tip arrays. All techniques are compatible with standard semiconductor fabrication processes. We also discuss the possible applications of each resulting manometer-scale structure, including high surface area substrates for capacitors and biochips, quantum dot arrays for nonvolatile memories, and silicon pillar arrays for vertical transistors or field-emission displays. (C) 2002 American Vacuum Society.