Date of Graduation

5-2023

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Bachelor of Science in Chemistry

Degree Level

Undergraduate

Department

Chemistry & Biochemistry

Advisor/Mentor

Coridan, Robert H.

Committee Member/Reader

Aloia, Lindsey

Committee Member/Second Reader

Chen, Jingyi

Committee Member/Third Reader

Stauss, Kim

Abstract

The microprocessor industry has historically been driven by the goal of shrinking devices. To create features small enough to fit on such devices, photolithography has conventionally been used in the micropatterning of noble metal surfaces. Photolithography is a complicated and expensive process that involves a cleanroom, metallization processes, and photoresist. While this investment makes sense for high revenue applications, a number of microelectronic devices do not require nanometer-scale patterned features. Examples of such applications include specific types of antennae, sensing electrodes, and photocatalysts. Photolithography for these devices is thus too costly in both money and energy. The Coridan lab has developed an easier, photoelectrochemical method of patterning gold by selectively electrodepositing gold on a photodoped cuprous oxide (Cu2O) electrode. However, most of the applications for microfabricated noble metal surfaces do not work if the metal pattern is on a Cu2O electrode. A method was developed to selectively deposit small features of gold using a nail polish (nitrocellulose) mask and to chemically isolate the electrodeposited gold pattern off the electrode while maintaining the integrity of its structure, so that it can be placed onto a more helpful substrate. Hydrophilic hydrogel overlayers were found to serve as a medium for etchant to selectively remove Cu2O and hold onto the gold features left behind.

Keywords

photoelectrochemistry; photolithography; noble metals

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