ELECTROCHEMICAL NANOFABRICATIONS: A GENERAL REVIEW - Electrochemical Nanofabrication: Principles and Applications - page 1

Chapter 1
ELECTROCHEMICAL
NANOFABRICATIONS: A GENERAL
REVIEW
Di Wei
Nokia Research Centre c/o University of Cambridge, Broers Building,
21 JJ Thomson Avenue, CB3 0FA, Cambridge, UK
[e-mail]
Nanofabrications have been largely used in various applications
such as photovoltaics, sensors, catalysts, integrated circuits,
electronics, micro-optics, and countless others. The methodology of
nanofabrication can be generally divided into two types of processes:
top-down and bottom-up. Top-down process refers to approaching
the nanoscale from larger dimensions, such as lithography,
nanoimprinting, scanning probe, and E-beam technique. In contrast,
the bottom-up fabrication process builds nanoscale artifacts from
the molecular level up, through single molecules or collections of
molecules that agglomerate or self-assemble. Using a bottom-up
approach, such as self-assembly enables scientists to create larger
and more complex systems from elementary subcomponents (e.g.,
atoms and molecules). Generally speaking, top-down processes
that transfer minute patterns onto material are more matured than