Combing a nanofibre in a nanojunction

Using the nanofibres obtained from a colloidal gold solution as model objects, we test different methods of manipulation at the nanometre scale. The atomic force microscope can be used to deform, cut and move nanofibres with a diameter larger than 2 nm. For smaller fibres, we show that a 'soft' manipulation can be performed using wet processes: a capillary flow brings the fibres to a targeted location of the surface while a molecular combing how stretches and aligns the fibre. This mechanism is used to position sub-nanofibres between the two electrodes of a coplanar nanojunction.