Effects of AFM tip-based direct and vibration assisted scratching methods on nanogrooves fabrication on a polymer resist

Abstract This study proposes two atomic force microscope (AFM) tip-based direct nanoscratching methods including single-pass scratching and multi-pass scratching compared with a vibration-assisted scratching method to fabricate nano-grooves on the surface of the polymethylmethacrylate (PMMA) thin-film resist. In order to protect the AFM tip from wearing and optimize the subsequent etching process, the machined depth is expected slightly less than the PMMA thickness to prevent the tip directly contacting with the silicon substrate and obtain better process results. First, single-pass scratching tests are performed on films with different thickness employing varied normal loads. Results show that the machined depths of the grooves cannot be obtained slightly less than the thickness of the film very easily when scratching with single-pass method, 50–120 nm in the present study, which may not be very suitable for the following etching process. Multi-pass and vibration-assisted methods are then utilized to solve this limitation of the machined depth in single-pass process. The machined depths using the multi-pass method are dependent on scratching times and the applied normal loads. Moreover, the depth closed to the thickness of the film can be obtained by enlarging the number of the scratching cycles. However, with a longer scratching time, large tip wear can be found. For vibration assisted method, the machined depths are controlled by the vibration amplitude and the applied normal load. With the vibration in z direction increasing, the machined depth can be enlarged comparing with the single-pass, which makes the fabrication process be feasible. In addition, the vibration-assisted method contributes to less tip wear during the machining process.