Innovative method to obtain metal and metal oxide nanostructures
In this invention, a robust method for fabricating high-aspect-ratio structures through a self-folding process of planar thin films is developed. It relies solely on three standard microfabrication steps, lithography, etching, and sputtering processes, provides the flexibility to position the spalled structures
according to the application requirements, and is fully compliant with CMOS fabrication standards. This method has been successfully demonstrated for metal-oxides and metals. The width of the fabricated structures is dependent on the thickness of the film deposited by sputtering, where structures as small as 20 nm in width have been obtained.
