Micro- and Nano-Scale Fabrication of Fluorinated Polymers by Direct Etching Using Focused Ion Beam

Micro- and nano-scale fabrications of various fluorinated polymers were demonstrated by direct maskless etching using a focused ion beam (FIB). The etching rates of perfluorinated polymers, such as poly(tetrafluoroethylene) (PTFE), poly(tetrafluoroethylene- co -hexafluoropropylene) (FEP), poly(tetrafluoroethylene- co -perfluoroalkoxyvinylether) (PFA), were about 500--1000 times higher than those of partially fluorinated polymers, such as poly(tetrafluoroethylene- co -ethylene) (ETFE) and poly(vinilydene--fluoride) (PVdF). Controlled high quality and high aspect-ratio nanostructures of spin-coated cross-linked PTFE were obtained without solid debris. The height and diameter of the fibers were about 1.5 \mbox{$\mu$m} and 90 nm, respectively. Their aspect ratio was about 17.