Fabrication of nanometer-scale structures on insulators and in magnetic materials using a scanning probe microscope

Abstract

Field evaporation and electron induced local heating in scanning probe microscopes [atomic force microscope, scanning tunnel microscope (STM), and magnetic force microscope (MFM)] are investigated for a nanometer-sized structure fabrication on an insulator and for a fine magnetic domain formation in a magnetic material. Application of negative voltage to the gold-coated AFM probe can be provided to make gold lines 40 nm wide and dots 20 nm in diameter on SiO2/Si by field evaporation. Reversely, in a positive voltage, thermal processes are dominant, one of which is the formation of nanometer-sized magnetic domains produced by electron induced local heating using STM and MFM. The proposed MFM recording can form 60×240 nm2 domains in a Pt/Co multilayer magnetic film and they can be observed with the same probe.