Nanofabrication Techniques for Electron and Ion Beams

Nanofabrication using electron and ion beams encompasses a suite of direct-write, maskless techniques capable of creating and modifying structures with sub-10 nm resolution. Electron beam lithography (EBL) exploits a finely focused electron probe to pattern resist layers, enabling high-fidelity replication of design files on planar and curved surfaces. Focused electron beam induced deposition (FEBID) and focused ion beam induced deposition (FIBID) extend this capability to additive three-dimensional (3D) growth by dissociating adsorbed precursors under the beam. In contrast, beam-induced etching (BIE) removes material selectively by generating reactive species in situ. Helium ion microscopy (HIM) and neon ion beam systems, using gas field ion sources, have further pushed the envelope by combining imaging, milling and analytical modalities with enhanced surface sensitivity. These tools support integrated workflows for prototyping photonic elements, nano-electrodes, magnetic nanostructures and mould inserts for soft lithography. Key challenges include control of deposit composition, minimisation of proximity effects on non-planar substrates, management of charging artifacts and optimisation of throughput for practical applications in nanoelectronics, quantum devices and advanced sensors. The ongoing convergence of predictive modelling, automated beam control and advanced precursor chemistries is driving rapid progress towards true 3D nanoprinting and multi-material integration at the nanoscale.

Research from Nature Portfolio

Recent studies have demonstrated the direct-write fabrication of complex 3D nanomagnetic architectures by employing focused electron beams in conjunction with tailored precursors. Freestanding ferromagnetic lattices with feature sizes below 100 nm were realised, and their stray-field distributions characterised by micro-Hall sensing, revealing switchable magnetic states and collective behaviour unattainable by planar techniques. In parallel, advances in deposit chemistry have enabled the growth of ultrapurified gold nanostructures via a single-step electron beam-induced process. By co-injecting an oxidative enhancer during deposition, researchers achieved metal contents exceeding 90 at.% and resistivities approaching bulk values. This breakthrough opens pathways to direct-write nano-contacts for quantum materials and plasmonic waveguides without post-processing. Together, these works illustrate the maturing of electron beam induced deposition into a versatile platform for both functional nano-electronics and bespoke 3D magnetic nanosystems.

Nanofabrication Techniques for Electron and Ion Beams publication trend

The graph below shows the total number of articles in nanofabrication techniques for electron and ion beams across all publications each year (not limited to Nature Index journals).

Technical terms

Electron beam lithography (EBL): A direct-write technique using a focused electron probe to pattern resist layers with nanometre precision on substrate surfaces.

Focused electron beam induced deposition (FEBID): Additive nanofabrication where a precursor gas is dissociated by a focused electron beam, depositing material in three dimensions.

Focused ion beam (FIB): A technique that uses a focused stream of ions to mill, image or deposit material at the nanoscale, often coupled with scanning electron microscopy.

Helium ion microscopy (HIM): An imaging and patterning technique using a helium ion source that offers high resolution, surface sensitivity and compatibility with analytical modalities.

References

1. Roadmap for focused ion beam technologies. Applied Physics Reviews (2023).
2. Electron beam lithography on nonplanar and irregular surfaces. Microsystems & Nanoengineering (2024).
3. Focused electron beam induced deposition: A perspective. Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology (2012).
4. Direct-write of free-form building blocks for artificial magnetic 3D lattices. Scientific Reports (2018).
5. Highly conductive and pure gold nanostructures grown by electron beam induced deposition. Scientific Reports (2016).
6. Imaging and Analytics on the Helium Ion Microscope. Annual Review of Analytical Chemistry (2019).
7. Continuum models of focused electron beam induced processing. Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology (2015).