Investigation of nanoporous thin-film alumina templates

This paper presents the results of a systematic study of the fabrication of thin-film alumina templates on silicon and other substrates. Such templates are of significant interest for the low-cost implementation of semiconductor and metal nanostructure arrays. In addition, thin-film alumina templates on silicon have the potential for nanostructure integration with silicon electronics. Formation of thin-film alumina templates on silicon substrates was investigated under different fabrication conditions, and the dependence of pore morphology and pore formation rate on process parameters was evaluated. In addition, process conditions for improved pore size distribution and periodicity were determined. The template/silicon interface, important for nanostructure integration on silicon, was investigated using capacitance-voltage measurements and electron microscopy, and was found to be of good device quality. Formation of thin-film alumina templates on nonsilicon substrates such as glass, indium-tin-oxide-coated glass, and silicon carbide was also investigated. (C) 2004 The Electrochemical Society.