Energy dissipation contributed on the machined depth via dynamic plowing lithography of atomic force microscopy

Abstract

In this study, the atomic force microscopy tip-based dynamic plowing lithography approach is employed to scratch on the poly(methyl methacrylate) thin-film surface. A theoretical model is established based on the relationship between the tip energy dissipation and material removal volume, and the corresponding experiments are also conducted. Both the theoretical and experimental results show that the drive amplitude is proportional to the square of the machined depth of the nanoscale grooves. The mean deviations between the predicted and experimental depths are less than 10%. It is also indicated that the scratching velocity in the range of 0.01–80 μm/s is proportional to the square of the depth (1/h2), and the mean deviations between the predicted and experimental depths are also less than 7%. In addition, based on the above conclusions, a uniform ripple with desired dimensions can be achieved successfully by overlapping the machined nanogrooves. The wavelength and amplitude of the ripples are determined by controlling the feature size of nanogrooves.