Helt James M, Drain Charles M, Batteas James D
Department of Chemistry, College of Staten Island and the Graduate Center of the City University of New York, 2800 Victory Boulevard, Staten Island, New York 10314, USA.
J Am Chem Soc. 2004 Jan 21;126(2):628-34. doi: 10.1021/ja035142i.
A benchtop method for the facile production of nanoscale metal structures on polymers is demonstrated. This approach allows for the design and patterning of a wide range of metallic structures on inexpensive polymer surfaces, affording the fabrication of nanoscaled platforms for use in the design of sensors, actuators, and disposable electronic and photonic devices. Numerous structures, from simple nanowires to multilayered metallic gratings, are demonstrated, with sizes ranging from microns to the nanoscale. The process involves molding a malleable metal film deposited on a rigid substrate such as mica, by the compression of a plastic polymer stamp with the desired pattern against the metal film. While under compression, an etchant is then used to modify the metal. Upon separation of the stamp from the support, micro- to nanoscaled metallic structures are found on the stamp and/or on the substrate. The sizes of the structures formed depend on the sizes of the features on the stamp but can be fine-tuned by about 4-fold through variations in both pressure and duration of etching. Also, depending on the processing, multiple dimension metallic structures can be obtained simultaneously in a single stamping procedure. The metallic structures formed on the stamp can also be subsequently transferred to another surface allowing for the construction of multilayered materials such as band gap gratings or the application of electrical contacts. Using this approach, fabrication of both simple and complex micro- to nanoscaled structures can be accomplished by most any researcher as even the grating structure of commercial compact disks may be used as stamps, eliminating the requirement of expensive lithographic processes to form simple structures.
展示了一种在聚合物上轻松制备纳米级金属结构的台式方法。这种方法能够在廉价的聚合物表面设计和图案化多种金属结构，为制造用于传感器、致动器以及一次性电子和光子器件设计的纳米级平台提供了可能。展示了从简单纳米线到多层金属光栅等众多结构，尺寸范围从微米到纳米级。该过程包括通过将带有所需图案的塑料聚合物印章压在沉积在刚性基板（如云母）上的可锻金属膜上进行模塑。在压缩过程中，然后使用蚀刻剂对金属进行改性。当印章与支撑物分离时，在印章和/或基板上发现微米到纳米级的金属结构。形成的结构尺寸取决于印章上特征的尺寸，但可通过蚀刻压力和持续时间的变化进行约4倍的微调。此外，根据加工情况，在单次冲压过程中可同时获得多维金属结构。印章上形成的金属结构随后也可转移到另一个表面，用于构建多层材料，如带隙光栅或应用电触点。使用这种方法，大多数研究人员都可以完成简单和复杂的微米到纳米级结构的制造，因为即使是商业光盘的光栅结构也可用作印章，无需昂贵的光刻工艺来形成简单结构。
