Condensation‐Controlled Toposelective Vapor Deposition in Nano‐ and Microcavities: Theory, Methods, Applications, and Related Technologies

Abstract Nanotechnology drives technological progress in many frontiers, from electronics to medicine, from tougher composites to adaptive surfaces. As the feature sizes are made smaller, the importance of surfaces is increased. Many of the most powerful methods for surface manipulation are variants of vapor deposition (VD). However, VD is typically not surface‐selective and, therefore, extra work steps are needed to integrate the methods into nanofabrication routines. Furthermore, many fields are moving toward 3D nanostructures, which unavoidably means increasingly complex nanocavities. Capillary condensation (CC) offers new selectivity rules for VD by inherently targeting cavities, which have been the most difficult locations to coat thus far. The most important controlling parameter in CC is the partial pressure, which is primarily adjusted by the reaction chamber, not the substrates or the reagents. In this article, the theory of CC, different reactor setups, materials, reagents and substrates, and various applications of CC in VD techniques are presented. The CC‐based methods are briefly compared to other cavity‐filling methods for gaining perspective on their potential for advancing modern technology. Finally, several observations on the characteristics of the methods, termed collectively as condensation‐controlled toposelective vapor deposition, are analyzed. The implications may affect the way one thinks about VD.