Sub-10 nm Self-Enclosed Self-Limited Nanofluidic Channel Arrays

• Published in: Nano letters Vol. 8; no. 11; pp. 3830 - 3833
• Main Authors: Xia, Qiangfei, Morton, Keith J, Austin, Robert H, Chou, Stephen Y
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Chemical Society 01.11.2008
• Subjects: Applied sciences; Cross-disciplinary physics: materials science; rheology; DNA - analysis; DNA - chemistry; DNA - ultrastructure; Electronics; Exact sciences and technology; Materials science; Methods of nanofabrication; Micro- and nanoelectromechanical devices (mems/nems); Microarray Analysis - methods; Microscopy, Electron, Scanning; Nanoscale pattern formation; Nanostructures - chemistry; Nanostructures - ultrastructure; Oxidation-Reduction; Physics; Semiconductor electronics. Microelectronics. Optoelectronics. Solid state devices; Silicon Dioxide - chemistry; Temperature; Transition Temperature; Array; Nanopatterning; Laser pulse; DNA; Nanoimprint lithography; Oxidation; Silicon; Nanomaterial synthesis; Nanofluidic circuit
• ISSN: 1530-6984; 1530-6992
• DOI: 10.1021/nl802219b

We report a new method to fabricate self-enclosed optically transparent nanofluidic channel arrays with sub-10 nm channel width over large areas. Our method involves patterning nanoscale Si trenches using nanoimprint lithography (NIL), sealing the trenches into enclosed channels by ultrafast laser pulse melting and shrinking the channel sizes by self-limiting thermal oxidation. We demonstrate that 100 nm wide Si trenches can be sealed and shrunk to 9 nm wide and that λ-phage DNA molecules can be effectively stretched by the channels.