Rapid micropatterning of mesoporous silica film by site-selective low-energy electron beam irradiation

Rapid microfabrication of mesoporous silica film at low temperature was achieved with low-energy electron beam (LEEB) irradiation. A mesostructured film (thickness approximately 200 nm), which was prepared through hydrolysis and condensation of tetramethoxysilane in the presence of hexadecyltrimethylammonium chloride, was irradiated with LEEB at 25 kV and 300 microA under pressures of 10 and 1000 Pa. The surfactant molecules can be eliminated completely at temperatures less than 40 degrees C after only 10 min (10 Pa) and 5 min (1000 Pa) of irradiation, resulting in conversion to a highly ordered mesoporous silica film without cracking. The LEEB-irradiated film also showed reasonable chemical resistance toward dilute hydrofluoric acid solution due to sufficient consolidation by cross-linking of silicate networks during the irradiation. The unirradiated regions were etched away preferentially to the irradiated areas; therefore, rapid micropatterning of the mesoporous silica film was possible by area-selective LEEB irradiation followed by chemical etching.