A conventional TEWSTEM has been used for the fabrication of -10 nm-size structures by electron-beam lithography. The electron microscope provides a versatile tool for studying the lithographic process with control of the beam energy, current, and profile combined with the ability to image both the probe and fabricated structures. Straightforward techniques are described for generating ultrasmall structures for physics and device experiments on both bulk substrates and on thin films. New resist processes and the effects of electron-beam energy as studied by these techniques are discussed.
INTROD WCTION
A variety of devices and structures with dimensions of tens of nanometers have been fabricated by electron-beam lithography. Fabrication in this size range will enable studies of fundamental physical processes that are observable only on this size scale. To accomplish this, a modified TEWSTEWSEM (Philips 400T) has been used as a n electronbeam writing instrument, probing the size limits of conventional-type electron-beam li- thography and studying novel electron-beam microfabrication techniques. This paper is a review and outline of techniques for fabricating ultrasmall structures with this type of instrument.