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Science 19 March 1993:
Vol. 259. no. 5102, pp. 1724 - 1726
DOI: 10.1126/science.259.5102.1724
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Articles

Formation of Nanometer-Scale Grooves in Silicon with a Scanning Tunneling Microscope

A. Kobayashi 1, F. Grey 1, R. S. Williams 2, and M. Aono 1

1 Aono Atomcraft Project, ERATO, JRDC, 5-9-9 Tohkohdai, Tsukuba, Ibaraki 300-26, Japan
2 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, University of California, Los Angeles, CA 90024-1569

Grooves a few nanometers wide can be formed on a Si(111) surface with a scanning tunneling microscope when the tip is above a critical voltage. This may provide a promising approach to nanodevice fabrication. The dependence of the critical voltage on tunneling current, tip polarity, and tip material was studied with silver, gold, platinum, and tungsten tips. The results are consistent with field emission of positive and negative silicon ions. The variation of critical voltage with current is explained quantitatively by a simple tunneling equation that includes the effect of the contact potential between tip and sample.

Submitted on June 8, 1992
Accepted on January 13, 1993


THIS ARTICLE HAS BEEN CITED BY OTHER ARTICLES:
Fabrication of Atomic-Scale Structures on Si(001) Surfaces.
C. T. Salling and M. G. Lagally (1994)
Science 265, 502-506
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