Electron-beam lithography assisted patterning of surfactant-templated mesoporous thin films

Here we report a novel approach to fabricating patterned three-dimensional (3D) mesoporous thin films by spin coating a surfactant-templated SiO 2 or TiO 2 precursor solution onto electron-beam (EB) lithographically prepared resist moulds. Subsequent mechanical polishing and calcination led to patterned SiO 2 or TiO 2 thin films with uniform mesopores and an amorphous or nanocrystalline framework. This approach provides a novel route for patterning mesoporous non-siliceous thin films as well as silica with feature sizes from hundreds of nanometres to sub-millimetres over areas of several square centimetres. This is of much interest for the miniaturization of devices and for potential applications from low- k materials to optoelectronic devices and biochemical sensors.