Study on the effects of feed directions on chip formation and machined depth when implementing nanoscratching by nanomilling approach

摘要

In the present study, nanochannels are fabricated on a poly (methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) surface using an atomic force microscopy (AFM) tip-based nanomilling method. Experiments are conducted using a silicon tip with a radius around 30 nm. The influence of three typical feeding directions of the relative rotational motion between the tip and the sample on the machined results is studied in detail. Results show that the processing outcomes are obviously different when machining with various feed directions. The chip formation, machined depth and the material accumulated on the sides of the groove are considered as the evaluation indicators for the machining outcomes. Finally, the optimized feed direction is selected based on these results to guarantee the machining quality of the fabricated nanochannels, which may have the potential for the nanofluidic applications.