Advanced Development for Defense Science and Technology

Precise location control and patterned growth of sub-22 nano meter nano materials have long been central challenges in semiconductor nano material growth, highlighted in the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (2007). We propose to combine a modified optical trapping technology with the metal catalyzed nano material chemical vapor deposition growth system to resolve these challenges. We modify the conventional optical trapping technology to heat the nano metal catalyst particles into liquid droplets and to trap and move these melted droplets towards the center of the trapping laser beam. Then nano materials growth can be catalyzed and initialized in the pre-determined locations precisely. To grow sub-22nm nano materials, we introduce a pre-growth evaporation process to shrink the size of nano metal droplets. We also use time sharing and other parallel trapping techniques for nano material patterned growth with applications to the silicon-germanium material system.