Direct electrochemical nanopatterning of polycarbazole monomer and precursor polymer films: ambient formation of thermally stable conducting nanopatterns

The direct nanopatterning of polycarbazole on ultrathin films of a "precursor polymer" and monomer under ambient conditions is reported. In contrast to previous reports on electrochemical dip-pen nanolithography using monomer ink or electrolyte-saturated films in electrostatic nanolithography, these features were directly patterned on spin-cast films of carbazole monomer and poly(vinylcarbazole) (PVK) under room temperature and humidity conditions. Using a voltage-biased atomic force microscope (AFM) tip, electric-field-induced polymerization and cross-linking occurred with nanopatterning in these films. Different parameters, including writing speed and bias voltages, were studied to demonstrate line width and patterning geometry control. The conducting property (current-voltage (I-V) curves) of these nanopatterns was also investigated using a conducting-AFM (C-AFM) setup, and the thermal stability of the patterns was evaluated by annealing the polymer/monomer film above the glass transition (T(g)) temperature of the precursor polymer. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first report in which thermally stable conducting nanopatterns were drawn directly on monomer or polymer film substrates using an electrochemical nanolithography technique under ambient conditions.