High speed fabrication of aluminum nanostructures with 10 nm spatial resolution by electrochemical replication

A high fidelity electrochemical replication technique for the rapid fabrication of Al nanostructures with 10 nm lateral resolution has been successfully demonstrated. Aluminum is electrodeposited onto a lithographically patterned Si master using a non-aqueous organic hydride bath of aluminum chloride and lithium aluminum hydride at room temperature. Chemical pretreatment of the Si surface allows a clean detachment of the replicated Al foil from the master, permitting its repetitive use for mass replication. This high throughput technique opens up new possibilities in the fabrication of Al-related nanostructures, including the growth of long range ordered anodic alumina nanochannel arrays.