Development of metal etch mask by single layer lift-off for silicon nitride photonic crystals

We present a method for fabrication of nanoscale patterns in silicon nitride (SiN) using a hard chrome mask formed by metal liftoff with a negative ebeam resists (maN-2401). This approach enables fabrication of a robust etch mask without the need for exposing large areas of the sample by electron beam lithography. We demonstrate the ability to pattern structures in SiN with feature sizes as small as 50 nm. The fabricated structures exhibit straight sidewalls, excellent etch uniformity, and enable patterning of nanostructures with very high aspect ratios. We use this technique to fabricate two-dimensional photonic crystals in a SiN membrane. The photonic crystals are characterized and shown to have quality factors as high as 1460. (c) 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.