Such processes can also bring contamination and impurity onto the area fabricated [13]. In recent decades, the proximal

probe method based on the mechanical stamp and scratching technique has been employed to produce patterned GaAs substrate [4, 14], but it is difficult, if not impossible, to fabricate GaAs nanostructures with low destruction by solely mechanical scratching. Therefore, it is ABT-888 research buy necessary to develop a straightforward and more flexible fabrication method for the GaAs surface. In the present study, a novel friction-induced micro/nanofabrication method that consists of nanoscratching and post-etching was presented to produce nanostructures on GaAs. The effects of the applied normal load and etching period on the formation

of the nanostructure were studied. Based on the X-ray photoelectron spectroscope (XPS) and Raman spectra characterization, the fabrication mechanism of the nanostructure was discussed. Finally, through a homemade multi-probe instrument, Salubrinal datasheet the capability of this fabrication method was demonstrated by producing various nanostructures on the GaAs surface, such as linear array, intersecting parallel, surface mesas, and special letters. Methods Material The GaAs (100) wafers, n-doped with Si, were purchased from JMEM Electronic Materials, Ltd., Tianjin, China. Using an atomic force microscope (AFM, SPI3800N, Seiko, Tokyo, Japan), the surface root-mean-square (RMS) roughness of the GaAs wafer was measured as 0.5 nm over a 1 μm × 1 μm area. The crystal state of the GaAs material was detected by the X-ray diffraction (XRD, X’Pert, Selleckchem GSK1904529A PANalytical, Selleckchem U0126 Almelo, Netherlands), showing that the GaAs wafer was single crystal in (100) plane orientation. Before the fabrication, the GaAs wafers were ultrasonically cleaned with methanol and ethanol for 3 min in turn, and successively rinsed with deionized water for 10 min to remove surface contamination. Fabrication method As shown

in Figure 1, the maskless fabrication process consists of scratching and post-etching. When the GaAs surface was scratched by a diamond tip along the designed traces, grooves can be generated on the scanned area. After etching in H2SO4 aqueous solution, different protrusive nanostructures can be produced in situ from the scratched area on the GaAs surface. Scratching tests on the GaAs surface were performed by a nanoscratch tester (CSM Instruments, Peseux, Switzerland) or a homemade multi-probe instrument [15]. The spherical diamond tips used for scratching have the radii of about 5 μm. After the scratching tests, the specimens were dipped in a mixture of H2SO4 aqueous solution (H2SO4/H2O2/H2O = 1:0.5:100) for post-etching [16]. During scratching and post-etching, the experimental temperature was controlled at 22°C and the relative humidity varied between 50% and 55%. All the AFM images of GaAs specimens were scanned by silicon nitride tips (MLCT, Veeco Instruments Inc.