MRI: Acquisition of 3D Lithography System with Sub-Micrometer Resolution

该奖项为技术（格鲁吉亚技术）的格鲁吉亚研究所提供支持，以获得亚微米分辨率的3D直接激光写入（3D-DLW）光刻系统，该系统将安装在马库斯纳米技术大楼（MNB）的共享用户，开放式洁净室设施中。使用双光子聚合，所提出的3D-DLW系统可以将任意形状的三维图案写入光敏聚合物薄膜中，横向分辨率低至150纳米。因此，这些工具补充了格鲁吉亚技术公司提供的光学和电子束光刻工具，这些工具只能分别写入特征尺寸低至1微米和10纳米的二维图案。MNB的洁净室是格鲁吉亚理工学院电子和纳米技术研究所（IEN）的一部分，不仅对格鲁吉亚理工学院的研究人员开放，而且对学术界和工业界的外部用户开放，作为NSF资助的国家纳米技术协调基础设施（NNCI）计划的一部分。在美国一个主要的开放式洁净室设施中安装这种3D直接激光写入光刻系统，不仅可以为格鲁吉亚理工学院的研究人员，还可以为学术界、工业界和政府实验室的外部用户提供最先进的亚微米分辨率3D图案化能力。与现有的洁净室工具集一起，3D-DLW系统将能够制造各种3D微米和纳米结构，并将其集成到设备和系统中。格鲁吉亚理工学院电子与纳米技术研究所将举办有关3D光刻工具的应用和功能的研讨会，以向本科生和研究生、博士后、教师和行业研究人员推广该系统。PI和他的合作PI将使用3D-DLW系统将模块嵌入到格鲁吉亚理工学院教授的课程中。最后，将为小学、初中和高中开发基于3D光刻的教育模块。凭借3D直接激光写入光刻系统以亚微米分辨率写入真实3D图案的独特能力，目标是促进广泛的研究活动，如光子学和微光学，微机电系统（MEMS），再生医学，细胞生物学和组织工程，多功能纳米材料以及光学和机械超材料的微系统和微流体组件等领域。因此，3D结构的材料选择不仅限于越来越多的（光敏）聚合物，而且可以使用模板和薄膜涂覆技术来扩展，以包括例如，金属和无机杂质。来自格鲁吉亚理工学院工程学院和科学学院以及邻近的埃默里大学的六所学校的15名教师已经确定了这种3D-DLW系统的研究和培训用途。

This award provides support for the Georgia Institute of Technology (Georgia Tech) to acquire a 3D Direct Laser Writing (3D-DLW) Lithography System with sub-micrometer resolution, which will be installed in the shared-user, open-access cleanroom facilities of the Marcus Nanotechnology Building (MNB). Using two-photon polymerization, the proposed 3D-DLW system can write arbitrarily-shaped, three-dimensional patterns into light-sensitive polymer films with a lateral resolution down to 150 nm. The tools, thus, complements optical and e-beam lithography tools available at Georgia Tech, which can only write two-dimensional patterns with feature sizes down to 1µm and 10nm, respectively. The cleanroom in the MNB is part of Georgia Tech's Institute for Electronics and Nanotechnology (IEN) and open not only to Georgia Tech researchers, but also outside users from academia and industry, as part of the NSF-funded National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure (NNCI) program. Installing this 3D Direct Laser Writing Lithography System in a major, open-access cleanroom facility in the US, enables access to state-of-the-art 3D patterning capability with sub-micrometer resolution not only for researchers from Georgia Tech, but also external users from academia, industry, and government labs. Together with the existing cleanroom tool set, the 3D-DLW system will enable fabrication of a wide variety of 3D micro- and nanostructures and their integration into devices and systems. Georgia Tech's Institute for Electronics and Nanotechnology will offer workshops on the applications and capabilities of the 3D lithography tool to promote the system to undergraduate and graduate students, postdocs, faculty and researchers from industry. The PI and his Co-PIs will embed modules using the 3D-DLW system into courses taught at Georgia Tech. Finally, education modules based on 3D lithography will be developed for elementary, middle, and high schools. With the 3D Direct Laser Writing Lithography System's unique ability to write true 3D patterns with sub-micrometer resolution, the goal is to catalyze a broad spectrum of research activities in areas such as photonics and micro-optics, microelectromechanical systems (MEMS), microsystems and microfluidic components for regenerative medicine, cell biology and tissue engineering, multifunctional nanomaterials, as well as optical and mechanical metamaterials. Thereby, the material choice for the 3D structures is not only limited to an increasing number of (light-sensitive) polymers, but can be extended using templating and thin-film coating techniques to include, e.g., metals and inorganic dielectrics. Fifteen faculty members spanning six schools across Georgia Tech's College of Engineering and College of Sciences, as well as from neighboring Emory University have identified research and training uses for this 3D-DLW system.