Direct-write nano-fabrication with focused electron beams — principles and applications
Michael Huth
Over its rather long history, focused electron beam induced deposition (FEBID) has mostly
been used as an auxiliary process in passivating surfaces in sample preparation for
transmission electron microscopy. This has changed over the last one and a half
decades. On the one hand, FEBID has been established as the leading technical
approach to lithography mask repair on the industrial scale. On the other hand, FEBIDrelated
technical and methodological developments, FEBID-derived materials, and
FEBID-based device fabrication have had a significant impact in various areas of basic
and applied research, such as nanomagnetism and superconductivity, plasmonics, and
sensing. Despite this dynamic development, the FEBID user base does still form a rather
exclusive club of enthusiasts. In this talk, my aim is to provide insight into the basics of
FEBID and its potential for a selection of areas, in particular single electron effects,
nanomagnetism and superconductivity.