Wafer-scale nanofabrication of sub-5 nm gaps in plasmonic metasurfaces
Gour Jeetendra,
Beer Sebastian,
Paul Pallabi,
Alberucci Alessandro,
Steinert Michael,
Szeghalmi Adriana,
Siefke Thomas,
Peschel Ulf,
Nolte Stefan,
Zeitner Uwe Detlef
Affiliations
Gour Jeetendra
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Abbe Center of Photonics, Institute of Applied Physics, Albert-Einstein-Str. 15, 07745Jena, Germany
Beer Sebastian
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Abbe Center of Photonics, Institute of Applied Physics, Albert-Einstein-Str. 15, 07745Jena, Germany
Paul Pallabi
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Abbe Center of Photonics, Institute of Applied Physics, Albert-Einstein-Str. 15, 07745Jena, Germany
Alberucci Alessandro
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Abbe Center of Photonics, Institute of Applied Physics, Albert-Einstein-Str. 15, 07745Jena, Germany
Steinert Michael
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Abbe Center of Photonics, Institute of Applied Physics, Albert-Einstein-Str. 15, 07745Jena, Germany
Szeghalmi Adriana
Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Optics and Precision Engineering IOF, Albert-Einstein-Str. 7, 07745Jena, Germany
Siefke Thomas
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Abbe Center of Photonics, Institute of Applied Physics, Albert-Einstein-Str. 15, 07745Jena, Germany
Peschel Ulf
Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institute of Solid State Theory and Optics, Max-Wien-Platz 1, 07743Jena, Germany
Nolte Stefan
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Abbe Center of Photonics, Institute of Applied Physics, Albert-Einstein-Str. 15, 07745Jena, Germany
Zeitner Uwe Detlef
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Faculty of Physics and Astronomy, Abbe Center of Photonics, Institute of Applied Physics, Albert-Einstein-Str. 15, 07745Jena, Germany
In the rapidly evolving field of plasmonic metasurfaces, achieving homogeneous, reliable, and reproducible fabrication of sub-5 nm dielectric nanogaps is a significant challenge. This article presents an advanced fabrication technology that addresses this issue, capable of realizing uniform and reliable vertical nanogap metasurfaces on a whole wafer of 100 mm diameter. By leveraging fast patterning techniques, such as variable-shaped and character projection electron beam lithography (EBL), along with atomic layer deposition (ALD) for defining a few nanometer gaps with sub-nanometer precision, we have developed a flexible nanofabrication technology to achieve gaps as narrow as 2 nm in plasmonic nanoantennas. The quality of our structures is experimentally demonstrated by the observation of resonant localized and collective modes corresponding to the lattice, with Q-factors reaching up to 165. Our technological process opens up new and exciting opportunities to fabricate macroscopic devices harnessing the strong enhancement of light–matter interaction at the single nanometer scale.
