Ultraflat nanopores for wafer-scale molecular-electronic applications

Abstract

Electronic building-blocks whose electrical characteristics are based on the intrinsic transport mechanism of a self-assembled monolayer (SAM) of molecules have the potential to offer novel and application-tailored functionality, achievable via synthetic chemistry approaches, while being less sensitive to microscopic fluctuations compared to single-molecule electronics. To implement such molecular building blocks and exploit their full potential in a solid-state architecture, a scalable platform compatible with standard fabrication processes is necessary, which guarantees molecular integrity throughout the entire process flow. Targeting a platform where the SAM is integrated in a vertical orientation, we present a fabrication process that yields pores with ultrasmooth platinum bottom electrodes and diameters ranging from 100 õm down to 30 nm. This scalable process is demonstrated on 4 wafers with several 10'000 pores per wafer and will allow the statistical study of molecular transport properties based on large datasets under various conditions.