Nanohole arrays with sub-30 nm diameter formed on GaAs using nanoporous alumina mask

Abstract

Nanohole arrays with a sub-30 nm diameter were formed on GaAs substrates by inductively coupled plasma reactive-ion etching (ICP-RIE) using nanoporous alumina films as transfer masks. Whether the pore configurations of the alumina masks were transferred onto the GaAs substrates depended on the exposure time of ICP-RIE. In spite of the sub-30 nm pore diameter of the alumina masks, the ion bombardment induced in SiCl4/Ar gas by ICP-RIE properly responded on the GaAs substrate through the pores of the alumina masks. ICP-RIE using nanoporous alumina masks can be used as a prospective method to produce nanostructures.