"Dip-Pen" nanolithography.

Piner, RD; Zhu, J; Xu, F; Hong, S; Mirkin, CA · Science · 1999

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

A direct-write "dip-pen" nanolithography (DPN) has been developed to deliver collections of molecules in a positive printing mode. An atomic force microscope (AFM) tip is used to write alkanethiols with 30-nanometer linewidth resolution on a gold thin film in a manner analogous to that of a dip pen. Molecules are delivered from the AFM tip to a solid substrate of interest via capillary transport, making DPN a potentially useful tool for creating and functionalizing nanoscale devices.