RESUMEN
A multifunctional NEMS platform based on a mass-producible, surface relief grating has been developed and fabricated directly in polymer materials. The pattern consists of high aspect ratio interdigitated nanometer-sized pairs of walls and can be produced in a low-complexity one-step patterning process with nanoimprint lithography. In this paper, we demonstrate the usefulness of the platform primarily by showing an application as a high-sensitivity mass sensor in air. The sensors, which are based on the high frequency resonant response of around 200 MHz, show a mass responsivity of the order of 0.1 Hz/zg per wall at room temperature and in ambient air. Their ability to selectively adsorb airborne target molecules, such as thiols, is also demonstrated. We also show that the same device can function as a varactor for electronic circuits based on its large tunable capacitive range.
RESUMEN
Ga diffusion from focused ion beam (FIB) milled grooves has been studied using x-ray photoemission electron microscopy (XPEEM) and mirror electron microscopy (MEM). We analyze the surface chemistry of the FIB structures measuring the Ga presence in the top layers of the milled grooves and morphological defects inside the grooves. The Ga is initially strictly confined to the grooves. However, annealing at temperatures as low as 150 degrees C leads to rapid and significant Ga surface diffusion from the FIB structures. The out-diffused Ga forms a thin layer extending up to several microns laterally in a non-regular pattern. The diffusion is significantly enhanced at small crystallites at the edges of the grooves. We explain the general behavior with an atomic scale model in which interstitial Ga in the milled areas diffuses out and substitutes silanol groups on the surface.