Fabrication of amorphous silicon nanoribbons by atomic force microscope tip-induced local oxidation for thin film device applications

Abstract

We demonstrate the feasibility of induced local oxidation of amorphous silicon by atomic force microscopy. The resulting local oxide is used as a mask for the elaboration of a thin film silicon resistor. A thin amorphous silicon layer deposited on a glass substrate is locally oxidized following narrow continuous lines. The corresponding oxide line is then used as a mask during plasma etching of the amorphous layer leading to the formation of a nanoribbon. Such an amorphous silicon nanoribbon is used for the fabrication of the resistor.