Micromachined probes for nanometer scale measurements and methods of making such probes
US5969345A · kind A · utility
24Cited by
7References
13Claims
0Family size
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Apr 30, 1997 |
| Grant date | Oct 19, 1999 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Apr 30, 2017 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC Y)Emerging Cross-Sectional Technologies
- CPC primaryY10S977/875
- WIPO fieldMicro-structural and nano-technology
- WIPO sectorChemistry
Abstract
A submicrometer photodiode probe with a sub-50 nanometer tip radius is used for optical surface characterization on a nanometer scale. The nanoprobe detects subwavelength optical intensity variations in the near field of an illuminated surface. The probe comprises a metal-semiconductor Schottky diode that is constructed at the end of a micromachined tip of a semiconductor wafer. A process is disclosed for micromachining the tip of the semiconductor wafer and then of creating a photodiode at the tip, with the photodiode having an optical aperture of a size less than 1000 nanometers.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.