Fabrication of multi-material 3D structures by the integration of direct laser writing and MEMS stencil patterningElectronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c8nr09174a

• Main Authors: Reeves, Jeremy B, Jayne, Rachael K, Barrett, Lawrence, White, Alice E, Bishop, David J
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 14.02.2019
• ISSN: 2040-3364; 2040-3372
• DOI: 10.1039/c8nr09174a

The construction of a complex, 3D optical metamaterial challenges conventional nanofabrication techniques. These metamaterials require patterning of both a deformable mechanical substrate and an optically-active structure with ∼200 nm resolution and precision. The soft nature of the deformable mechanical materials often precludes the use of resist-based techniques for patterning. Furthermore, FIB deposition approaches produce metallic structures with considerable disorder and impurities, impairing their optical response. In this paper we discuss a novel solution to this nanofabrication challenge - the integration of direct laser writing and MEMS stencil patterning. We demonstrate a variety of methods that enable this integration and then show how one can produce optically-active, 3D metamaterials. We present optical characterization data on one of these metamaterials to demonstrate the viability of our nanofabrication approach. MEMS stencil patterning coupled with direct laser writing is used to fabricate 3D microstructures with nanoscale metallic elements.