Nanochannel system fabricated by MEMS microfabrication and atomic force microscopy

A silicon nanochannel system with integrated transverse electrodes was designed and fabricated by combining micro-electro-mechanical systems (MEMS) micromachining and atomic force microscopy (AFM)-based nanolithography. The fabrication process began with the patterning of microscale reservoirs and electrodes on an oxidised silicon chip using conventional MEMS techniques. A nanochannel, approximately 30 [micro sign]m long with a small semi-circular cross-sectional area of 20 nm × 200 nm, was then mechanically machined on the oxide surface between the micro reservoirs by applying AFM nanolithography with an all-diamond probe. Anodic bonding was used to seal off the nanochannel with a matching Pyrex cover. Continuous flow in the nanochannel was verified by pressurising a solution of fluorescein isothiocyanate in ethanol through the nanochannel in a vacuum chamber. It was further demonstrated by translocating negatively charged nanobeads (diameter approximately 20 nm) through the nanochannel by using an external DC electric field. The passage of the nanobeads caused a sharp increase in the transverse electrical conductivity of the nanochannel.