Collaborative Research: Development Of Nano-Electrical Discharge Machining (NANO-EDM) For Advanced Manufacturing

这笔资金用于开发用于纳米级切割的电火花加工(EDM)工艺，即“自上而下”的纳米级加工。初步实验已经成功地证明了这种技术方法的可行性，可以在云母上沉积的原子扁金中加工40 nm(直径)乘30 nm(深)的圆形过孔。与聚焦离子束(FIB)和电子束光刻(EBL)等现有工艺不同，拟议的纳米电火花加工工艺提供了一个独特而令人信服的机会来写入精密的纳米结构，例如以低成本(根据当前预测，对于一批10x10个孔，每孔0.25美分)和超高速(目前，对于25 nm直径x 15 nm深孔，速度为2个孔/分钟)。研究人员将从理论和实验上探索工艺条件的作用，并研究不同介质中放电能量密度、电压脉冲持续时间和刀尖与工件电极之间的放电间隙的影响。美国大学和UNL之间的独特合作将带来纳米机械加工、纳米尺度测量、表面科学和宏微观电火花加工等相关领域的跨学科专业知识和实验室资源。纳米电火花加工的成功实际上将使该行业能够在非真空环境中从事各种导电和半导体材料的工作。纳米电火花加工将在广泛的新兴应用领域发挥重要作用。在更广泛的社会影响下，PIS计划在“用于制造的纳米机械加工”领域引入一门课程。在拟议的研究中，将特别强调培训代表性不足的少数群体。PIS将与地区学校和社区大学建立伙伴关系。如今，培训是不可避免的，尤其是对中西部的制造业来说，在美国创造和保留与纳米制造相关的新的高薪工作岗位。

This grant provides funding to develop electrical discharge machining (EDM) process for nanometer scale cutting, "top-down" nanoscale machining. Initial experiments have successfully demonstrated feasibility of this technical approach to machine 40 nm (diameter) by 30 nm (deep) circular vias in atomically flat gold deposited on mica. Proposed nano-EDM process offers a unique and cogent opportunity to write precise nano structures, such as vias, at low cost (0.25 cent/hole according to current projection for a batch of 10x10 holes) and ultra high speed (currently the speed is 2 holes/minute for 25 nm dia x 15 nm deep hole), unlike the established processes such as focused ion-beam (FIB) and electron beam lithography (EBL). The investigators will explore theoretically and experimentally the role of process conditions and study effect of discharge energy density, voltage pulse duration, and discharge gap between the tool tip and the workpiece electrodes in various media. The unique collaboration between the U of A and UNL will bring interdisciplinary expertise and laboratory resources in related fields of nano mechanical machining, nano scale measurements, surface science and macro- and micro-EDM.The success of nano-EDM will practically allow the industry to work on gamut of electrically conducting as well as semiconducting materials in a non-vacuum environment. Nano-EDM will be instrumental for a wide range of emerging applications viz. nano vias for interconnects, single DNA detection device fabrication, etc. Further in the broader impact to the society, the PIs plan to introduce a course in the area of "Nano Mechanical Machining for Manufacturing". In the proposed research, the special emphasis will be to train underrepresented minorities. PIs will build partnerships with area schools and community colleges. Training is inevitable today, to the manufacturing community particularly in the Midwest, to create and retain new high paid nanomanufacturing related jobs in US.