From the bottom-up: a physico-chemical approach towards 3D nanostructures with atomic-scale control

ongoing

It is a long held dream in nanoscience to synthesize materials from the bottom-up with atomic-level control of structure and properties, yet the fabrication of nanoelectronics still relies completely on top-down processing. Innovative schemes for bottom-up fabrication will be realized in this project by developing approaches for area-selective atomic layer deposition (ALD), a technique that has the potential to become the new paradigm of bottom-up processing because of its atomic-scale control. Current work on area-selective ALD focuses on the processing of planar substrates, while emerging developments in nanoelectronics and quantum computing require the fabrication of 3D nanostructured devices. Building on recent innovations in my lab, a multidisciplinary approach to area-selective ALD will be employed which combines vapor-phase dosing of inhibitor molecules as a chemical method and the exposure to directional ions from a plasma as a physical method. Fundamental understanding of the mechanisms of chemical inhibition will be acquired, and a new strategy for physical removal of defects will be developed. These methods will be employed on 3D substrates to enable the fabrication of future device structures. By bringing inhibitor molecules and the directional nature of plasma ions together, new flavors of selective processing will be invented including anisotropic or topographically-selective ALD, which opens up a new direction for the field of area-selective ALD. The synergy between my extensive expertise with in-situ reaction mechanism studies and plasma processing, my leading role in the field of area-selective ALD, and the group’s unique facilities for atomic-scale processing, offers a stepping stone to the long-awaited shift from top-down to bottom-up processing. Moreover, this work will allow for the scaling of electronics down to the single-nanometer level.