Method of fabricating structures, starting from material rods

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10260152-B2
Application number	US-201415029328-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 10, 2014
Priority date	Oct 15, 2013
Publication date	Apr 16, 2019
Grant date	Apr 16, 2019

Abstract

A method, and corresponding apparatus, of fabricating a structure by chemical wet etching starting from a material rod of millimetric or sub-millemetric size, the method comprising: dipping an end portion (170) of the material rod (128,129) into a vessel (105) containing an etchant liquid (110) and a protective overlayer (175) floating on top of the etchant liquid, imparting a relative rotational movement of the etchant liquid with respect to the end portion (170) of the material rod immersed therein, wherein said imparting a relative rotational movement comprises imparting to the etchant liquid a rotational movement component with respect to a static reference system.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method of fabricating a nanostructure by chemical wet etching starting from a material rod of millimetric or sub-millimetric size, the method comprising:
dipping an end portion ( 170 ) of the material rod ( 128 , 129 ) into a vessel ( 105 ) containing an etchant liquid ( 110 ) and a protective overlayer ( 175 ) floating on top of the etchant liquid,
imparting a relative rotational movement of the etchant liquid with respect to the end portion ( 170 ) of the material rod immersed therein,
characterized in that
said imparting a relative rotational movement comprises imparting to the etchant liquid a rotational movement component with respect to a static reference system such that the etchant liquid flows in a direction opposite that of the rod.

2. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
while imparting to the etchant liquid said rotational movement component with respect to the static reference system, gradually extracting the end portion ( 170 ) of the material rod from the etchant liquid.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein said imparting a relative rotational movement of the etchant liquid ( 110 ) with respect to the end portion ( 170 ) of the material rod comprises imparting to the vessel ( 105 ) a rotational movement with respect to said static reference system.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein said imparting a relative rotational movement of the etchant liquid ( 110 ) with respect to the end portion ( 170 ) of the material rod comprises imparting to the material rod a rotational movement with respect to said static reference system.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein said material rod is immersed into the etchant liquid with a longitudinal axis of the material rod essentially coaxial with a rotation axis of the etchant liquid with respect to said static reference system.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein said material rod is immersed into the etchant liquid with a longitudinal axis of the material rod essentially parallel but not coaxial with a rotation axis of the etchant liquid with respect to said static reference system.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein said material rod is immersed into the etchant liquid with a longitudinal axis of the material rod slanted with respect to a rotation axis of the etchant liquid with respect to said static reference system.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the material rod is an optical fiber ( 128 , 129 ), and further comprising:
propagating an optical radiation through the optical fiber;
detecting a transmitted and/or scattered and/or back-reflected optical radiation, respectively transmitted and/or scattered and/or back-reflected at an optical fiber tip ( 170 ) of the optical fiber immersed in the etchant liquid to monitor a process of formation of said tip.

9. The method of claim 8 , wherein said detecting the transmitted and/or scattered and/or back-reflected optical radiation comprises comparing an intensity of the transmitted and/or scattered and/or back-reflected optical radiation to predetermined patterns.

10. A method of fabricating a nanostructure by chemical wet etching starting from a material rod of millimetric or sub-millimetric size, the method comprising:
dipping an end portion ( 170 ) of the material rod ( 128 , 129 ) into a vessel ( 105 ) containing an etchant liquid ( 110 ) and a protective overlayer ( 175 ) floating on top of the etchant liquid,
imparting a relative rotational movement of the etchant liquid with respect to the end portion ( 170 ) of the material rod immersed therein,
characterized in that:
said imparting a relative rotational movement comprises imparting to the etchant liquid a rotational movement component with respect to a static reference system; and
dipping the end portion of the material rod includes immersing the material rod into the etchant liquid with a longitudinal axis of the material rod slanted with respect to a rotation axis of the etchant liquid with respect to said static reference system.

11. A method of fabricating a nanostructure by chemical wet etching starting from a material rod of millimetric or sub-millimetric size, the method comprising:
dipping an end portion ( 170 ) of the material rod ( 128 , 129 ) into a vessel ( 105 ) containing an etchant liquid ( 110 ) and a protective overlayer ( 175 ) floating on top of the etchant liquid, wherein the material rod is an optical fiber,
imparting a relative rotational movement of the etchant liquid with respect to the end portion ( 170 ) of the material rod immersed therein,
propagating an optical radiation through the optical fiber,
detecting a transmitted and/or scattered and/or back-reflected optical radiation, respectively transmitted and/or scattered and/or back-reflected at an optical fiber tip ( 170 ) of the optical fiber immersed in the etchant liquid to monitor a process of formation of said tip,
characterized in that:
said imparting a relative rotational movement comprises imparting to the etchant liquid a rotational movement component with respect to a static reference system, and
detecting the transmitted and/or scattered and/or back-reflected optical radiation comprises comparing an intensity of the transmitted and/or scattered and/or back-reflected optical radiation to predetermined patterns.

Assignees

• Consiglio Nazionale Ricerche
• Centrofermi Museo Storico Della Fisica E Centro Studi E Ricerche
• Consiglio Naz Delle Richerche

Inventors

• Barucci Andrea
• Cosi Franco
• Pelli Stefano
• Righini Giancarlo
• Soria Silvia
• Nunzi Conti Gualtiero
• Giannetti Ambra

Classifications

• H10P72/0426

  with the semiconductor substrates being dipped in baths or vessels · CPC title

• H10P72/0422

  for wet etching · CPC title

• H10P50/00

  Etching of wafers, substrates or parts of devices · CPC title

• B05C3/02

  the work being immersed in the liquid or other fluent material · CPC title

• B05C3/10

  the articles being moved through the liquid or other fluent material (conveying articles through baths B65G, e.g. B65G49/02) · CPC title