Professors Jin Kon Kim (CE) and Won-bo Lee (Chemical and Biological Engineering, SNU) developed a technology that arranges nanostructures vertically without heating or a solvent process. The results made the Sep. 9 cover of the authoritative material engineering journal, Advanced Functional Materials.
Lithography is used to make semi-conductor devices that are smaller and have a more highly developed data-processing ability. Currently, 'photolithography' is adopted in the industrial sites, but it is not appropriate for the printings on strips less than 20nm. 'Induced self-assembly lithography' can be used on strips less than 20nm, for which EU Consortium has started a 6 billion-dollar project (ColiSA.MMP).
The team changed the design of the block copolymer from a line to a star, so that the polymer chain can self-neutralize its surface. This makes the procedure possible without the additional heat and solvent processes.