MRI: Development of an Ion-Beam-assisted Glancing Angle Deposition Tool (iGLAD) for 3D Nanostructure Thin Film Preparation with in-situ Ellipsometry control

This Major Research Instrumentation (MRI) grant will enable the creation of a new tool - Ion-Beam-assisted Glancing Angle Deposition Tool (iGLAD) - for preparation of highly-defined sculptured columnar thin films (SCTFs), an emerging class of highly-ordered, nano-engineered materials with high surface area. The iGLAD tool will feature ion beam sources in addition to traditional evaporation sources, providing multiple growth modes. The ion sources will allow for substrate cleaning and prepatterning without sample exposure to the ambient environment prior to fabrication, thereby enhancing control of the ordered arrangement of the nanomaterials. The iGLAD tool will feature a novel adaptive optics design for in-situ real-time diagnostics to track substrate movements throughout the fabrication process. This will allow, for the first time, monitoring and control of the nanomaterial formation process by generalized spectroscopic ellipsometry--providing valuable insights into nanomaterial formation mechanisms and strategies for improving their structural, geometrical and material properties. The iGLAD tool will make a new class of nanomaterials widely available and will enable unique research training and experience for internal and external students and researchers. The instrumentation will substantially advance research in nanomaterials fabrication and control and understanding of structure-property relations and design of novel nano-engineered optical materials. It will enable new biosensors and new chromatography principles, new tissue engineering and gene delivery concepts, new high-speed electronics, energy storage, and environmental sensing research. This research will inspire new applications for highly-ordered 3D nanomaterials with potentially transformative scientific and commercial impacts, which are further enhanced by partnerships with national laboratories and private sector firms.