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A self-assembled diblock copolymer mask teamed with conventional ion etching is one approach to nanometer patterning of surfaces. An ultrathin film of polystyrene-block-poly(2-vinylpyridine) on mica is shown to yield isolated, regularly arranged clusters of polystyrene surrounded by a thin layer of poly(2-vinylpyridine)—see Figure. Subsequent selective deposition of a metal film followed by etching results in surface patterning.
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Spatz et al. (1998) studied this question.
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