Formation of nanometer-scale gap electrodes based on a plasma ashing technique

We propose a new and reproducible method to fabricate metal electrodes with a nanometer-scale gap and width, which have been considered as one of the basic building blocks for future nano-devices. The techniques used in this study were the conventional photolithography, e-beam lithography and plasma ashing techniques. Specifically, the plasma ashing process was used to easily form the nanometer-sized gap (10 nm or less) that is difficult to realize by e-beam lithography only. Using the method investigated in this work, we demonstrated that Au electrodes with a nanometer-sized gap and width could be easily fabricated.