Journal of Vacuum Science & Technology B, Vol.26, No.6, 2426-2429, 2008
Easy duplication of stamps using UV-cured fluoro-silsesquioxane for nanoimprint lithography
A simple procedure for duplicating original nanoimprint masters was developed by using a new fluorinated photocurable silsesquioxane (SSQ) resin cast on either hard or flexible substrates. With an appropriate viscosity, this resin can be spin coated on the substrate, and the original SiO2 masters easily replicated in this resin by using a low pressure nanoimprinting process. The resin has a sufficient modulus in its cured state, which makes it suitable for nanoimprinting other polymeric materials. Due to the high thermal stability and UV transparency of SSQ materials, such a stamp can be used for both UV and thermal nanoimprinting. Furthermore, the fluoroalkyl groups contained in the silsesquioxane resin provide the low surface energy necessary for easy demolding after nanoimprinting. These features combined make the material an excellent candidate to fabricate a multitude of duplicates from an original nanoimprint lithography master for mass fabrication.
Keywords:curing;elastic moduli;moulding;nanolithography;nanopatterning;replica techniques;resins;soft lithography;spin coating;surface energy;thermal stability;transparency;ultraviolet lithography;viscosity