Sub micrometer ceramic structures fabricated by molding a polymer-derived ceramic

This paper describes the fabrication of sub micrometer silicon oxycarbide (SiCO) ceramic structures. The method consists in replicating silicon micro/nanostructures in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), followed by a micro/nano molding of liquid polymer derived ceramic precursor (PDC). A dense ceramic SiCO replicated structure is obtained. In order to replicate the original structures with the highest fidelity possible, we applied a combination of coatings on the PDMS mold, in order to improve both filling and releasing. It was possible to fabricate reproducibly arrays of ceramic tips with a radius of 120 nm.

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► Fabrication of sub micrometer polymer derived ceramic high aspect ratio structures.
► Polymer derived ceramic micro/nano molding on soft PDMS mold.
► Ceramic feature size of 50 nm reached.
► Mechanical properties and composition of ceramic material determined.