Polymer Pen Lithography (PPL) is a lithographic patterning tool for soft nanomaterials including polymers, nanoparticles, DNAs, proteins, and virus particles, all of which are hard to pattern on a surface with high precision using conventional lithographic techniques. The instrument utilizes soft-material pen arrays to print up to 100,000+ duplicate patterns of arbitrary design (no mask or mold needed) simultaneously onto a substrate with down to sub-100 nm resolution.

Capabilities include:

• Arbitrary pattern design without mask or mold.
• Image files can be imported and converted to pattern design.
• cm²-scale area patterning of 10⁵–10⁶ duplicate patterns within hours (each pen prints up to a 100 μm × 100 μm area).
• Printing of versatile materials through surface modifications of pen arrays and substrates.
• Pattern size and resolution control by chamber humidity and ink formulation.
• Spin/spray coating of inks.

Technical Specifications:

• LabView-based control software.
• X-Y-Z piezo scanning stage (travel range 100 μm × 100 μm × 100 μm, repeatability 10 nm).
• Motorized long-travel motor for approaching of substrate to pen array (25 mm travel range).
• Manual X-Y positioning stage (travel range 25 mm × 25 mm).
• CCD camera (4000 pixel × 3000 pixel resolution) with LED light source for monitoring the printing process.
• Humidity control chamber.
• Tip and tilt control for pen array alignment, automated alignment algorithm.
• User-defined dot spacing, dwell time, and approach/retraction velocity for printing quality optimization.
• Ability to load, save, and merge patterns, capability to define a custom pattern by loading an image.

Contact: Kyungtae Kim