Chemical Lift-Off Process Using Acetone Ink for Easy Fabrication of Metallic Nano/Microstructures

In this paper, a chemical lift-off process using acetone ink was examined to attain the easy fabrication of metallic nano/microstructures. This process consists of five steps: cleaning of the substrate, chemical stamping, metal film deposition, coating with glue, and selective peeling. Details of the hot embossing process for the cycloolefin polymer (COP) film mold fabrication and the selection of the organic solvent ink for the chemical stamping are also explained. The fabrication of several kinds of metallic nano/microstructures, such as Au line and space structures, Au square film arrays, and Au dot arrays, is demonstrated. It is shown that metal films coated on the stamped region peeled off with the glue, and a metal film shaped in the stamp’s negative pattern remained on the substrate. Acetone is effective for reducing the surface energy of the substrate and the bonding strength, resulting in selective peeling of the coated metal film.