Thermal Transport in Nanoelectronic Devices Cooled by On-Chip Magnetic Refrigeration.

On-chip demagnetization refrigeration has recently emerged as a powerful tool for reaching microkelvin electron temperatures in nanoscale structures. The relative importance of cooling on-chip and off-chip components and the thermal subsystem dynamics are yet to be analyzed. We study a Coulomb blockade thermometer with on-chip copper refrigerant both experimentally and numerically, showing that dynamics in this device are captured by a first-principles model. Our work shows how to simulate thermal dynamics in devices down to microkelvin temperatures, and outlines a recipe for a low-investment platform for quantum technologies and fundamental nanoscience in this novel temperature range.

Stroboscopic supercontinuum white-light interferometer for MEMS characterization.

We used a supercontinuum-based scanning white-light interferometer to characterize the oscillation of a MEMS device. The output of a commercially available supercontinuum light source (FiberWare Ilum II USB) was modulated to achieve stroboscopic operation. By synchronizing the modulation frequency of the source to the sample oscillation, dynamic 3-D profile measurements were recorded. These results were validated against those obtained with a white light LED setup. The measured maximum deflection of a 400×25×4 µm(3) microbridge driven with 0-6.8 V sinusoidal voltage at 10 Hz was 1.42±0.03 µm (supercontinuum), which agreed with the LED measurement. The method shows promise for characterization of high-frequency MEMS devices.

Coating of nanoporous membranes: atomic layer deposition versus sputtering.

Nanoporous anodic alumina membranes and silicon samples with plasma etched nanopores have been coated with zinc oxide or gold layer using atomic layer deposition (ALD) or sputtering, respectively. In the case of ALD process, the precursor pulses were extended, compared with planar substrate coating. Thick (60 microm) anodic alumina membranes have been conformally coated with zinc oxide ALD layer. Metal sputtering technique was used just for opposite purpose--to minimize the penetration of gold into the pores during gold-coating of the top and bottom surfaces of the membrane. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) has been used to investigate the layer thickness, uniformity and conformality inside the nanopores.

The fabrication of silicon nanostructures by local gallium implantation and cryogenic deep reactive ion etching.

We show that gallium-ion-implanted silicon serves as an etch mask for fabrication of high aspect ratio nanostructures by cryogenic plasma etching (deep reactive ion etching). The speed of focused ion beam (FIB) patterning is greatly enhanced by the fact that only a thin approx. 30 nm surface layer needs to be modified to create a mask for the etching step. Etch selectivity between gallium-doped and undoped material is at least 1000:1, greatly decreasing the mask erosion problems. The resolution of the combined FIB-DRIE process is 20 lines microm(-1) with the smallest masked feature size of 40 nm. The maximum achieved aspect ratio is 15:1 (e.g. 600 nm high pillars 40 nm in diameter).

Feasibility of atmospheric pressure desorption/ionization on silicon mass spectrometry in analysis of drugs.

The feasibility of atmospheric pressure desorption/ionization on silicon mass spectrometry (AP-DIOS-MS) for drug analysis was investigated. It was observed that only compounds with relative high proton affinity are efficiently ionized under AP-DIOS conditions. The limits of detection (LODs) achieved in MS mode with midazolam, propranolol, and angiotensin II were 80 fmol, 20 pmol, and 1 pmol, respectively. In MS/MS mode the LODs for midazolam and propranolol were 10 fmol and 5 pmol, respectively. The good linearity (r(2) > 0.991), linear dynamic range of 3 orders of magnitude, and reasonable repeatability showed that the method is suitable for quantitative analysis.

Poly(dimethylsiloxane) electrospray devices fabricated with diamond-like carbon-poly(dimethylsiloxane) coated SU-8 masters.

This study presents coupling of a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) micro-chip with electrospray ionization-mass spectrometry (ESI-MS). Stable electrospray is generated directly from a PDMS micro-channel without pressure assistance. Hydrophobic PDMS aids the formation of a small Taylor cone in the ESI process and facilitates straightforward and low-cost batch production of the ESI-MS chips. PDMS chips were replicated with masters fabricated from SU-8 negative photoresist. A novel coating, an amorphous diamond-like carbon-poly(dimethylsiloxane) hybrid, deposited on the masters by the filtered pulsed plasma arc discharge technique, improved significantly the lifetime of the masters in PDMS replications. PDMS chip fabrication conditions were observed to affect the amount of background peaks in the MS spectra. With an optimized fabrication process (PDMS curing agent/silicone elastomer base ratio of 1/8 (w/w), curing at 70 degree C for 48 h) low background spectra were recorded for the analytes. The performance of PDMS devices was examined in the ESI-MS analysis of some pharmaceutical compounds and amino acids.

Preparation of porous n-type silicon sample plates for desorption/ionization on silicon mass spectrometry (DIOS-MS).

This study focuses on porous silicon (pSi) fabrication methods and properties for desorption ionization on silicon mass spectrometry (DIOS-MS). PSi was prepared using electrochemical etching of n-type silicon in HF-ethanol solution. Porous areas were defined by a double-sided illumination arrangement: front-side porous areas were masked by a stencil mask, eliminating the need for standard photolithography, and backside illumination was used for the backside ohmic contact. Backside illumination improved the uniformity of the porosified areas. Porosification conditions, surface derivatizations and storage conditions were explored to optimize pSi area, pore size and pore depth. Chemical derivatization of the pSi surfaces improved the DIOS-MS performance providing better ionization efficiency and signal stability with lower laser energy. Droplet spreading and drying patterns on pSi were also examined. Pore sizes of 50-200 nm were found to be optimal for droplet evaporation and pore filling with the sample liquid, as measured by DIOS efficiency. With DIOS, significantly better detection sensitivity was obtained (e.g. 150 fmol for midazolam) than with desorption ionization from a standard MALDI steel plate without matrix addition (30 pmol for midazolam). Also the noise that disturbs the detection of low-molecular weight compounds at m/z < 500 with MALDI could be clearly reduced with DIOS. Low background MS spectra and good detection sensitivity at the 100-150 fmol level for pharmaceutical compounds were achieved with DIOS-MS.