Nanotribological properties of precision-controlled regular nanotexture on H-passivated Si surface by current-induced local anodic oxidation.

Nano-sized textures resulted from localized electrochemical oxidation by using atomic force microscopy (AFM) were fabricated on H-passivated Si surface. In this paper, the fabrication and nanotribological properties of nanotexture by local anodic oxidation (LAO) on H-passivated Si surface are presented. A special attention is paid to find the relation between the size of oxide nanotexture and operational parameters such as tip-sample pulsed bias voltage, pulsewidth, and relative humidity to fabricate oxide nanotexture. The nanotribological properties were investigated by a colloidal probe. The results indicate that the nanotextures exhibited low adhesion and greatly reduced friction force at nanometer scale.

Fabrication and adhesion of biomimetic nanotextures fabricated by local oxidation nanolithography.

Functional surfaces with biomimetic nanotexture have aroused much interest because of their great advantages in applications. The nanometer-sized biomimetic textures are fabricated using current induced local anodic oxide (LAO) method. By controlling pulsed bias voltage, pulsewidth and relative humidity, the dimensions of biomimetic textures can be precisely controlled. In our study, an atomic force microscopy (AFM) is used for both fabrication and characterization. Conductive AFM allows fabrication process of biomimetic nanotexture without the need to change masks or repeat entire fabrication process. Furthermore, the adhesive characterization of the biomimetic nanotexture was investigated by a colloidal probe.

Precise positioning of lubricant on a surface using the local anodic oxide method.

This letter describes a new method for the precise positioning of a lubricant on a surface. The nanometer-sized patterns are first fabricated using the atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based local anodic oxide (LAO) method. Multiply alkylated cyclopentanes (MACs) serving as lubricant matrix layers on nanopatterns of silicon dioxide are fabricated. By controlling the velocity of pull-off and solution conditions, we selectively immobilize MACs on the patterned areas using the dip-coating method. In our study, AFM is used for both fabrication and characterization. AFM-LAO allows the fabricated patterns to be altered in situ without the need to change masks or repeat the entire fabrication process. Furthermore, the nanotribological characterization of lubricant matrix layers on the nanopatterns was investigated with a colloidal probe.