Non-Destructive Laser-Induced Transfer of Nanostructures to Flexible Substrates with Sub-5 Nanometer Resolution

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This grant supports the fundamental study of a new manufacturing process for additive transfer of nanometer-sized structures that are a thousand times smaller than the diameter of a human hair. The process uses a laser to lift the nanostructure non-destructively and place it with sub-5 nanometer precision on a flexible substrate. The process is affordable because it can be done under ambient conditions. Such a capability is important for applications such as wearables, sensors, and other flexible electronics, the economic manufacture of which advances the prosperity and security of the nation. Additive manufacturing or three-dimensional printing is widely used by engineers and designers for rapid prototyping customizable products. Unfortunately, such a rapid prototyping technique is yet to be developed for the nanoscale and for flexible substrates. The importance of manufacturing at the nanoscale lies in the extraordinary properties that materials exhibit at such small scales. Therefore, the ability to manufacture three-dimensional nanometer-sized structures becomes critically important to explore new properties and applications of nanomaterials. Reliable and cost-effective manufacturing of nanostructures and devices on flexible substrates has become increasingly important for the production of wearable devices with a worldwide market expected to reach USD 50 Billion by 2022. This award supports research on nanoscale three-dimensional printing that can enable rapid prototyping of both two-dimensional and three-dimensional nanostructures on flexible substrates. This award also enables broad participation of women and underrepresented minority students in research and education and STEM training of the next-generation workforce.The additive nanomanufacturing method in this research overcomes many limitations that commonly exist in conventional nanomanufacturing methods, which are high-cost, time-consuming, incompatibility with flexible substrates, and lack of customization. This research utilizes localized heating from a low-cost continuous-wave laser to lift-off nanostructures of virtually any shape and size. Through precise electrical manipulation, the lifted nanostructures are transfered and additively placed on flexible, conformal or rigid substrates, non-destructively, to form 3D and 3D nanoscale patterns with sub-5nm resolution. The whole manufacturing process happens under ambient conditions without the need of high-voltage or vacuum, which makes it cost-effective. The project involves precise position and temperature measurements to study the fundamental mechanisms for this manufacturing process. The initial speed and angular distribution of the lifted nanostructures are measured quantitatively by using optical forward scattered detection. The localized temperature in the manufacturing process is measured with temperature sensitive luminescent probes. Selective and compatible nanomanufacturing of complementary, 2D and 3D nanostructures, with high precision nano-scale gaps on flexible substrates are demonstrated.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.