Sidewall angle tuning in focused electron beam-induced processing

• Sangeetha Hari,
• Willem F. van Dorp,
• Johannes J. L. Mulders,
• Piet H. F. Trompenaars,
• Pieter Kruit and
• Cornelis W. Hagen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 447–456, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.40

• using focused ion beam (FIB) milling and shown as an electron tilt image in Figure 1b, clearly demonstrates the Gaussian shape. For lithography applications, however, both the long tails and the Gaussian cross section are highly undesirable. The tails may form interconnects to neighboring lines, and the

Investigating ripple pattern formation and damage profiles in Si and Ge induced by 100 keV Ar⁺ ion beam: a comparative study

• Indra Sulania,
• Harpreet Sondhi,
• Tanuj Kumar,
• Sunil Ojha,
• G R Umapathy,
• Ambuj Mishra,
• Ambuj Tripathi,
• Richa Krishna,
• Devesh Kumar Avasthi and
• Yogendra Kumar Mishra

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 367–375, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.33

• fabrication on Si and Ge by 100 keV Ar+ ion beam bombardment is discussed. The irradiation was performed in the ion fluence range of ≈3 × 1017 to 9 × 1017 ions/cm2 and at an incident angle of θ ≈ 60° with respect to the surface normal. The investigation focuses on topographical studies of pattern formation

• clustering of defects leads to a subsequent increase of the damage peak in irradiated samples (for an ion fluence of ≈9 × 1017 ions/cm2) compared to that in unirradiated samples. Keywords: atomic force microscopy; ion beam; nanopatterns; radiation damage; Rutherford backscattering spectrometry; transmission

• structures. Although these structures may not be visible to the naked eye, they certainly have a visible impact on the mentioned applications. Nanopatterning is a very delicate procedure that is only possible with special techniques such as ion beam sputtering (IBS), with which one can achieve nanostructures

Ultrasensitive and ultrastretchable metal crack strain sensor based on helical polydimethylsiloxane

• Shangbi Chen,
• Dewen Liu,
• Weiwei Chen,
• Huajiang Chen,
• Jiawei Li and
• Jinfang Wang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 270–278, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.25

• ion beam sputtering was obtained from Fuzhou Yingfei Xun Photoelectric Tech Co., Ltd, China; it possessed a density of 19.3 g·cm−3 and a conductivity of 4.52 × 107 S·m−1. Silver conductive adhesive, which was procured from Shenzhen Ausbond Co., LTD. (Guangdong, China), was employed to affix copper

• structured PDMS was initially cleansed through a 5 min Ar plasma sputtering and, subsequently, coated with a 10 nm thick Ti adhesion layer. After that, ion beam sputtering was utilized to deposit a 50 nm thick Au thin film onto the outer surface of the helically shaped PDMS. Then, a controlled pre-stretch

Ion beam processing of DNA origami nanostructures

• Leo Sala,
• Agnes Zerolová,
• Violaine Vizcaino,
• Alain Mery,
• Alicja Domaracka,
• Hermann Rothard,
• Philippe Boduch,
• Dominik Pinkas and
• Jaroslav Kocišek

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 207–214, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.20

• unperturbed. Present stability and nature of damages on DNA origami nanostructures enable fusion of DNA origami advantages such as shape and positioning control into novel ion beam nanofabrication approaches. Keywords: DNA nanotechnology; DNA origami; FIB; heavy ions; Introduction Ion beam interaction with

• used in tandem with ion beam therapies against cancer. Another unique application is in long-term data storage [4][5], and ion beams can be used to test the stability of such DNA-origami-based storage under irradiation from natural sources such as cosmic rays or radioisotope decay [6]. More important

• them in procedures based on direct ion beam exposure has so far been avoided because of concerns regarding uncontrollable radiation damage to these soft matter nanostructures. The induction of strand breaks by the direct and indirect effects of ionizing radiation on DNA is a well-known fact [14][15

Graphene removal by water-assisted focused electron-beam-induced etching – unveiling the dose and dwell time impact on the etch profile and topographical changes in SiO₂ substrates

• Aleksandra Szkudlarek,
• Jan M. Michalik,
• Inés Serrano-Esparza,
• Zdeněk Nováček,
• Veronika Novotná,
• Piotr Ozga,
• Czesław Kapusta and
• José María De Teresa

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 190–198, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.18

• -beam bombardment, which initially introduces defects into the graphene structure and then knocks out carbon atoms, although the edges of the fabricated nanostructures remain rough after the process [11]. Other direct techniques, such as focused ion beam (FIB) milling with heavy Ga+ ions, are not

TEM sample preparation of lithographically patterned permalloy nanostructures on silicon nitride membranes

• Joshua Williams,
• Michael I. Faley,
• Joseph Vimal Vas,
• Peng-Han Lu and
• Rafal E. Dunin-Borkowski

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2024, 15, 1–12, doi:10.3762/bjnano.15.1

• using three different fabrication methods: lift-off, ion beam etching (IBE), and stencil lithography. They were further analyzed using different instruments, including scanning electron microscopy, LTEM, and electron holography. A bilayer of positive PMMA resist was utilized in the first fabrication

• submicrometer apertures were milled on SiN membranes using a focused ion beam. Furthermore, we have developed a new TEM sample preparation method, where we fabricated Py nanostructures on a bulk substrate with a SiN buffer layer and etched the substrate to create a thin SiN membrane under the Py nanostructure

• mode to avoid melting of the PMMA resist. The second approach involved etching a thin Py film with an ion beam while preserving the intended structure with an electron-beam-patterned negative resist mask. Redeposition of etched material was found to construct fences at the edges of the structures

Exploring internal structures and properties of terpolymer fibers via real-space characterizations

• Michael R. Roenbeck and
• Kenneth E. Strawhecker

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 1004–1017, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.83

• investigated the processing and properties of high-performance terpolymer fibers, much remains to be understood about the internal nano- and microstructures of these fibers, and how these morphologies relate to fiber properties. Here we use a focused ion beam notch technique and multifrequency atomic force

• features at different length scales and verify the applicability of analytical structural models used to date. Over the last several years, a “focused ion beam (FIB) notch” technique has been developed and employed to address these gaps in understanding of the internal structures of fibers such as Kevlar

• chamber [9]. Kevlar® K29 fibers also discussed in this report underwent the same preparation techniques. Focused ion beam notching Conductively coated fibers were cut with a FIB as discussed in detail in an earlier study [9]. In summary, 2–3 μm wide through-cuts were notched into each fiber (Figure 1b

Ultralow-energy amorphization of contaminated silicon samples investigated by molecular dynamics

• Grégoire R. N. Defoort-Levkov,
• Alan Bahm and
• Patrick Philipp

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 834–849, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.68

• , Luxembourg Thermo Fisher Scientific, Hillsboro, OR, 97124, USA 10.3762/bjnano.14.68 Abstract Ion beam processes related to focused ion beam milling, surface patterning, and secondary ion mass spectrometry require precision and control. Quality and cleanliness of the sample are also crucial factors

• depths. Yet, low-energy ion beams come with a variety of challenges. When such low energies are used, the residual gas molecules in the instrument chamber can adsorb on the sample surface and impact the ion beam processes. In this paper we pursue an investigation on the effects of the most common

• other articles. Despite showing slight variations in values, the trends are almost identical. Unfortunately, none of the articles studied the effect of the incidence angle. Hence, this trend could not be compared. Regarding a minimal sample modification under ion beam irradiation, higher energies

A novel approach to pulsed laser deposition of platinum catalyst on carbon particles for use in polymer electrolyte membrane fuel cells

• Bogusław Budner,
• Wojciech Tokarz,
• Sławomir Dyjak,
• Andrzej Czerwiński,
• Bartosz Bartosewicz and
• Bartłomiej Jankiewicz

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2023, 14, 190–204, doi:10.3762/bjnano.14.19

• [27]. Direct deposition of PtNPs can be attained by the use of various physical vapor deposition techniques such as magnetron sputtering [28], sputtering [29], e-beam evaporation [30], dual ion-beam assisted deposition [31], and pulsed laser deposition (PLD) [27][32][33]. Previously, PLD has been used

Observation of collective excitation of surface plasmon resonances in large Josephson junction arrays

• Roger Cattaneo,
• Mikhail A. Galin and
• Vladimir M. Krasnov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1578–1588, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.132

• using photolithography and reactive ion etching. The JJ sensor with variable thickness and a width of ≈100 nm is made by Ga+ focused ion beam etching. The JJ is made small in order to increase its resistance Rn to approx. 50 Ω, which is needed for a good impedance matching with the antenna. In order to

Laser-processed antiadhesive bionic combs for handling nanofibers inspired by nanostructures on the legs of cribellate spiders

• Sebastian Lifka,
• Kristóf Harsányi,
• Erich Baumgartner,
• Lukas Pichler,
• Dariya Baiko,
• Karsten Wasmuth,
• Johannes Heitz,
• Marco Meyer,
• Anna-Christin Joel,
• Jörn Bonse and
• Werner Baumgartner

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1268–1283, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.105

• gold-sputtered (S150B, Edwards). The metatarsi were examined using a focused ion beam scanning electron microscope (FIB-SEM) tomography (Strata 400 STEM, FEI Company, Oregon, USA) at the Central Facility for Electron Microscopy at the RWTH Aachen University. Measurements were performed using the

Influence of water contamination on the sputtering of silicon with low-energy argon ions investigated by molecular dynamics simulations

• Grégoire R. N. Defoort-Levkov,
• Alan Bahm and
• Patrick Philipp

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 986–1003, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.86

• nanoprinting. For many of these applications, a precise control of ion-beam-induced processes is essential. The effect of contaminations on these processes has not been thoroughly explored but can often be substantial, especially for ultralow impact energies in the sub-keV range. In this paper we investigate

• probe tomography (APT) [5], and ion beam analysis used for life sciences applications [6][7]), surface patterning [8], nanolithography [9], nanomachining [10][11], and nanoprinting at room [12] and cryogenic temperatures [13]. The development of nanotechnology relies on lower ion beam energies and

• . Depending on the application, the ion beam energy is in the range of 10 to 30 keV when small spot sizes are required (i.e., spot sizes in the nanometre range) and at a few keV or even in the sub-keV range when low surface damage or minimized atomic mixing is required. One example is low-energy depth

Optimizing PMMA solutions to suppress contamination in the transfer of CVD graphene for batch production

• Chun-Da Liao,
• Andrea Capasso,
• Tiago Queirós,
• Telma Domingues,
• Fatima Cerqueira,
• Nicoleta Nicoara,
• Jérôme Borme,
• Paulo Freitas and
• Pedro Alpuim

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 796–806, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.70

• B2 samples. This result again supports that employing B2 PMMA yields fewer residues and may help in avoiding post-transfer treatments for advanced PMMA residue cleaning of graphene, such as annealing and ion beam irradiation [32]. The graph of the G band shift (Supporting Information File 1, Figure

Topographic signatures and manipulations of Fe atoms, CO molecules and NaCl islands on superconducting Pb(111)

• Carl Drechsel,
• Philipp D’Astolfo,
• Jung-Ching Liu,
• Thilo Glatzel,
• Rémy Pawlak and
• Ernst Meyer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2022, 13, 1–9, doi:10.3762/bjnano.13.1

• [47] operated in the frequency-modulation mode (resonance frequency f0 ≈ 25 kHz, spring constant k ≈ 1800 N/m, quality factor Q ≈ 14000, and oscillation amplitude A ≈ 0.5 Å). The tip mounted to the qPlus sensor consists of a 25 μm-thick PtIr wire, shortened and sharpened with a focused ion beam. A

Measurement of polarization effects in dual-phase ceria-based oxygen permeation membranes using Kelvin probe force microscopy

• Kerstin Neuhaus,
• Christina Schmidt,
• Liudmila Fischer,
• Wilhelm Albert Meulenberg,
• Ke Ran,
• Joachim Mayer and
• Stefan Baumann

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1380–1391, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.102

• , KPFM measurements were started with an imaging velocity of 1 image per minute to measure the relaxation of the introduced gradient. Electron microscopy The TEM specimens were cut from 60CSO20-FC2O pellets by focused ion beam (FIB) milling using a FEI Strata400 system with Ga ion beam. Further thinning

• and cleaning were performed with an Ar ion beam in a Fischione Nanomill 1040 at 900 eV and 500 eV beam energy, respectively. TEM and energy-filtered TEM (EFTEM) imaging were performed with a FEI Tecnai F20 at 200 kV. High-resolution HAADF imaging and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) chemical mapping were

Chemical vapor deposition of germanium-rich CrGe_x nanowires

• Vladislav Dřínek,
• Stanislav Tiagulskyi,
• Roman Yatskiv,
• Jan Grym,
• Radek Fajgar,
• Věra Jandová,
• Martin Koštejn and
• Jaroslav Kupčík

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 1365–1371, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.100

• transfer single NWs onto contact lithographic pads (Supporting Information File 1, Figure S9) to measure their conductivity. The NWs, however, turned out to be fragile and were destroyed when an attempt was made to cut them from the tungsten tip using a focused ion beam (FIB). Therefore, a method to

• with the Ga+ focused ion beam (FIB), gas injection system (GIS), and nanomanipulator OmniProbe 400 (Oxford Instruments) with a tungsten tip. The nanomanipulator enabled a direct contact of single as-grown NWs. The current–voltage (I–V) characteristics were measured using a Keithley 237 source

Is the Ne operation of the helium ion microscope suitable for electron backscatter diffraction sample preparation?

• Annalena Wolff

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 965–983, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.73

• commonly used approach is the focused ion beam (FIB) polishing. Unfortunately, artefacts that can be easily induced by Ga FIB polishing approaches are seldom published. This work aims to provide a better understanding of the underlying causes for artefact formation and to assess if the helium ion

• here looks at the ion-beam-induced artefacts when polishing copper for EBSD measurements for different ion species (Ga, Ne) as well as polishing protocols. EBSD is a characterization technique in scanning electron microscopes (SEMs) that allows for the study of microstructure, local texture, grain size

• elsewhere [31]. Throughout the past years, Ga-focused ion beam/scanning electron microscopes (Ga FIB/SEMs) have been used to polish samples [32][33]. Although it is recognized within the FIB community that Ga can induce artefacts in the sample [34][35][36][37], many of the encountered artefacts, which can

Uniform arrays of gold nanoelectrodes with tuneable recess depth

• Elena O. Gordeeva,
• Ilya V. Roslyakov,
• Alexey P. Leontiev,
• Alexey A. Klimenko and
• Kirill S. Napolskii

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 957–964, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.72

• direct-writing using electron beam lithography [11][12] or ion beam milling [13][14]) are limited by the ensemble area and expensive in mass production, but allow one to precisely tune the parameters of an array (a geometry of individual electrodes and the distance between them) over a wide range. An

Recent progress in actuation technologies of micro/nanorobots

• Ke Xu and
• Bing Liu

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 756–765, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.59

• towards the platinum end, and a maximum movement speed of 4 μm/s was achieved. After that, Chen et al. [40] designed a Z-shaped platinum hybrid nanorobot in order to meet the growing demand for micro/nanorobots in the biomedical field. It was manufactured using a combination of focused ion beam and plasma

A review of defect engineering, ion implantation, and nanofabrication using the helium ion microscope

• Frances I. Allen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 633–664, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.52

• multifaceted instrument enabling a broad range of applications beyond imaging in which the finely focused helium ion beam is used for a variety of defect engineering, ion implantation, and nanofabrication tasks. Operation of the ion source with neon has extended the reach of this technology even further. This

• ; focused helium ion beam-induced deposition; focused helium ion beam milling; helium ion beam lithography; helium ion implantation; Introduction Since the helium ion microscope (HIM) was introduced 15 years ago [1][2][3], over one hundred HIMs have been installed worldwide and over one thousand research

• focused ion beam as it is scanned across the sample. Compared with the scanning electron microscope (SEM), the HIM offers enhanced surface sensitivity, greater topographic contrast, and a larger depth of field [4][5]. A charge-neutralization system based on flooding the scanned region with low-energy

Spontaneous shape transition of Mn_xGe_1−x islands to long nanowires

• S. Javad Rezvani,
• Luc Favre,
• Gabriele Giuli,
• Yiming Wubulikasimu,
• Isabelle Berbezier,
• Augusto Marcelli,
• Luca Boarino and
• Nicola Pinto

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 366–374, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.30

• and 25 mA with a graphite monochromator. Step-scan diffractograms were collected in the 2θ range of 3–70° with 0.02° step and 3 s/step counting time. For HRTEM analysis, focused ion beam (FIB) lamellae were prepared using a dual-beam FIB. The lamellae were oriented along the elongation direction. The

Structural and optical characteristics determined by the sputtering deposition conditions of oxide thin films

• Petronela Prepelita,
• Florin Garoi and
• Valentin Craciun

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 354–365, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.29

• -frequency magnetron sputtering (rfMS) [27][28][29][30], vacuum thermal evaporation (VTE) [31][32][33], chemical methods [34], reactive ion beam sputter deposition [35], among others. For example, SiO2 and ZnO films obtained by rfMS can be either used as dielectric materials in metasurface structures or as

The patterning toolbox FIB-o-mat: Exploiting the full potential of focused helium ions for nanofabrication

• Victor Deinhart,
• Lisa-Marie Kern,
• Jan N. Kirchhof,
• Sabrina Juergensen,
• Joris Sturm,
• Enno Krauss,
• Thorsten Feichtner,
• Sviatoslav Kovalchuk,
• Michael Schneider,
• Dieter Engel,
• Bastian Pfau,
• Bert Hecht,
• Kirill I. Bolotin,
• Stephanie Reich and
• Katja Höflich

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 304–318, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.25

• geometry and raster settings. It also offers low-level beam path creation, providing full control over the beam movement and including sophisticated optimization tools. Three applications showcasing the potential of He ion beam nanofabrication for two-dimensional material systems and devices using FIB-o

• -mat are presented. Keywords: automated patterning; focused He ion beam; graphene; magnetic multilayers; mechanical resonator; pattern generation; plasmonic antennas; two-dimensional materials; Introduction Future breakthroughs in nanotechnology will rely on the ability to fabricate materials and

• nanometer range is heavily sought after. One promising candidate for ultraprecise nanofabrication is focused ion beam (FIB) machining. Focused ion beams locally remove material based on physical sputtering with a large degree of flexibility due to advanced beam control. FIB patterning is a direct single

Scanning transmission helium ion microscopy on carbon nanomembranes

• Daniel Emmrich,
• Annalena Wolff,
• Nikolaus Meyerbröker,
• Jörg K. N. Lindner,
• André Beyer and
• Armin Gölzhäuser

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 222–231, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.18

• detector in the dark field [20]. Kavanagh et al. used a silicon diode array as a pixelated sensor for transmission imaging to observe ion beam scattering with a static beam and as an end-point detection for pore milling into graphite sheets [21]. This work presents the design and capabilities of a dark

• the set. Figure 4a shows a freestanding membrane that was intentionally ruptured by a high-flux helium ion beam prior to imaging. The image shows the rupture, the membrane, and a folded layer of the CNM. At small acceptance angles, the membrane yields a high-intensity signal, while the overall

Imaging of SARS-CoV-2 infected Vero E6 cells by helium ion microscopy

• Natalie Frese,
• Patrick Schmerer,
• Martin Wortmann,
• Matthias Schürmann,
• Matthias König,
• Michael Westphal,
• Friedemann Weber,
• Holger Sudhoff and
• Armin Gölzhäuser

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2021, 12, 172–179, doi:10.3762/bjnano.12.13

• of its sub-nanometer imaging and ion-beam nanofabrication capabilities in materials science and engineering [1]. Although HIM soon proved to be a promising tool in the life sciences, the examination of biological samples by HIM proceeded at a much slower pace. In recent years, it has been used in the

• addition to the improved conductivity of the specimen, the deposited layer may contribute to the electron density of the surface, thus increasing secondary electron yield. This effect, commonly referred to as electron- and/or ion beam-induced deposition, is commonly observed in charged-particle microscopes