Passive micromechanical tags. An investigation into writing information at nanometer resolution on micrometer size objects

摘要

The authors have completed a 3-year study of the technology related to the development of micron-sized passive micromechanical tags. The project was motivated by the discovery in 1990 by the present authors that low energy, high charge state ions (e.g., Xe(sup +44)) can produce nanometer-size damage sites on solid surfaces, and the realization that a pattern of these sites represents information. It was envisioned that extremely small, chemically inert, mechanical tags carrying a large label could be fabricated for a variety of applications, including tracking of controlled substances, document verification, process control, research, and engineering. Potential applications exist in the data storage, chemical, food, security, and other industries. The goals of this project were fully accomplished, and they are fully documented here. The work was both experimental and developmental. Most of the experimental effort was a search for appropriate tag materials. Several good materials were found, and the upper limits of information density were determined (ca. 10(sup 12) bit/cm(sup 2)). Most of the developmental work involved inventing systems and strategies for using these tags, and compiling available technologies for implementing them. The technology provided herein is application-specific: first, the application must be specified, then the tag can be developed for it. The project was not intended to develop a single tag for a single application or for all possible applications. Rather, it was meant to provide the enabling technology for fabricating tags for a range of applications. The results of this project provide sufficient information to proceed directly with such development.