MRI: Acquisition of a Maskless Lithography Tool for the Brown Nanofabrication Central Facility

该奖项来自主要研究仪器计划，支持布朗大学收购现代无掩模光刻系统（海德堡仪器MLA-150）。 无掩模光刻，其中在计算机控制下通过在光致抗蚀剂覆盖的衬底上快速扫描激光束将图案转移到衬底，克服了当前光刻技术的许多限制。 该仪器将位于纳米纤维中心设施（NCF）内，并将支持布朗大学约25个研究小组的研究，包括从工程到物理到化学到生物医学工程的教师以及当地研究社区和行业。 MLA-150将以低成本和大面积实现高速和灵活的光学光刻，达到微米尺寸的特征，而不受现有掩模集的限制。 在不久的将来，它将使一系列资助或计划的电子和微流体设备研究项目的研究成为可能。 该系统的灵活性将有助于扩大目前由NCF支持的实验室课程的范围（三个工程制造课程，目前专注于二极管，晶体管和太阳能电池制造），以涵盖例如微流体设备。 博士后学者，研究生和本科生将有机会接受这种多功能制造技术的培训。 该主要研究仪器奖支持收购海德堡仪器MLA-150无掩模光刻工具，在150 mm的曝光范围内可实现约1微米的特征尺寸，快速计算机控制的高精度（0.5微米）对准和短（分钟长）曝光时间。该仪器包括两个激光照明模块和集成摄像头，可与现有结构进行高精度对准。该系统将被集成在布朗大学的一个新的纳米纤维中心设施（NCF）洁净室中。这种最先进的仪器将促进电子和光电器件不同研究领域之间的交叉点的跨学科研究：基于Ge量子点的光电探测器的制造;氮化物垂直电流晶体管;压电能量收集器件;和基于磁性隧道结的存储器元件和阵列。 在先进材料领域，它将有助于：太赫兹发射光谱的大面积表面图案化;用于结构着色的超薄层状材料;自组装纳米颗粒阵列的模板表面; 3D光催化结构;和基于相变材料的自适应元表面。 在快速发展的生物工程领域，MLA-150将允许大面积微流体结构研究空间限制的细胞迁移; DNA操作;和几何限制的干细胞迁移和分化。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award from the Major Research Instrumentation program supports Brown University with the acquisition of a modern maskless lithography system (Heidelberg Instruments MLA-150). Maskless lithography, where the pattern is transferred to the substrate by rapidly scanning a laser beam over the photoresist-covered substrate, under computer control overcomes many of the limitations of current photolithography techniques. The instrument will be located within the Nanofabrication Central Facility (NCF) and will support the research by some 25 research groups at Brown University including faculty from Engineering to Physics to Chemistry to Biomedical Engineering as well as local research community and industry. The MLA-150 will enable high-speed and flexible optical lithography down to micron-sized features at low cost and over large areas, without the constraints of pre-existing mask sets. In the immediate future, it will enable research in a range of funded or planned research projects in electronic and microfluidic devices. The flexibility of the system would help expand the range of laboratory courses currently supported by the NCF (three Engineering fabrication courses, currently focused on diode, transistor and solar cell fabrication) to encompass e.g. microfluidic devices. Postdoctoral scholars, graduate and undergraduate students will have an opportunity to be trained in this versatile fabrication technique. This Major Research Instrumentation award supports the acquisition of a Heidelberg Instruments MLA-150 maskless lithography tool, with ~1 micrometer achievable feature size over a 150 mm field of exposure, with fast computer-controlled high-accuracy (0.5 micrometer) alignment and short (minutes-long) exposure times. The instrument includes two laser illumination modules and integrated cameras for high-accuracy alignment to pre-existing structures. The system will be integrated in a new Nanofabrication Central Facility (NCF) cleanroom at Brown University. This state-of-the-art instrument will foster interdisciplinary research at the intersection between diverse research fields in electronic and optoelectronic devices: fabrication of Ge quantum-dot based photodetectors; nitride vertical current flow transistors; piezoelectric energy harvesting devices; and magnetic tunnel junction-based memory elements and arrays. In the advanced materials area, it will contribute to: large-area surface patterning for THz emission spectroscopy; ultra-thin layered materials for structural coloration; templated surfaces for self-assembled nanoparticle arrays; 3D photocatalytic structures; and adaptive meta-surfaces based on phase-change materials. In the rapidly expanding bio-engineering area, the MLA-150 will permit large-area microfluidic structures to study spatially confined cell migration; DNA manipulation; and geometrically-constrained stem cell migration and differentiation. The instrument will be made available to other local academic institutions and local industry.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.