NanoFabrication Kingston

Queen's University, Kingston, Ontario
What the facility does

Designing and prototyping innovations in materials, fluidics, mechanics, electronics and photonics technologies at the micro and nano scale

Areas of expertise

NanoFabrication Kingston provides researchers and companies with access to leading-edge equipment, methods, and expertise for designing and prototyping microsystems and nanotechnologies, and for training next-generation innovators.

Research services

Design and prototyping, including etching, lithography, deposition, micromachining and characterization, project execution and engineering support 

Sectors of application
  • Aerospace and satellites
  • Automotive
  • Chemical industries
  • Clean technology
  • Defence and security industries
  • Environmental technologies and related services
  • Information and communication technologies and media
  • Life sciences, pharmaceuticals and medical equipment
  • Manufacturing and processing

Equipment

Function

3D Printer: MiiCraft model LF80

Stereolithography (SLA)-type printer, using UV light to cure blue acrylic resin in thin layers of 50 µm or 100 µm

Electron Beam Lithography system: Raith Pioneer

High-resolution scanning electron microscope with software and stage control capability to perform electron-beam lithography to expose resists with <20 nm resolution.

Maskless lithographic system: Intelligent Micro-Patterning SF100 XPRESS

For patterning features from < 1 micron to several cm in photoresists without the need for a mask.

Picosecond Laser Micromachining System: Oxford Laser A series

For laser cutting, drilling, and milling in a variety of materials, such as semiconductors, glass, metal, polymer, and ceramic, with a line width of 10-15 micron.

Chemical printing system: Sonoplot/GIX Microplotter II nanoliter printer

Uses a capillary plotter to ultrasonically pattern liquids onto surfaces with 5-micron resolution.

Physical vapour deposition – evaporator

For depositing layers of materials 5-1000 nm thick by electron-beam evaporation under high vacuum. Common materials include aluminum, gold, and chromium.

Plasma cleaner – Plasmatic Systems Inc. Plasma-Preen

For removing organic material from a surface. Typical for cleaning a substrate prior to, or following, fabrication steps to ensure proper deposition, bonding, etc.

Optical microscope - Carl Zeiss Axio Imager A1m

For examining substrates and deposited coatings; and for imaging designs written on a substrate by laser micromachining, photolithography, or e-beam lithography.

Photolithography mask aligner – Neutronix-Quintel NxQ4006

For patterning photoresists with sensitivity in the g, h, and i lines.

Lithography sample preparation – laminar flow hood, spin coater, and baking plates

For cleaning substrates, coating them with resist for photolithography or e-beam lithography; developing patterned substrates, and baking.

Reactive Ion Etching System

Generates plasma for dry etching a wide range of materials including silicon-based materials (e.g., silicon oxide, silicon nitride, polysilicon), metal films (e.g., aluminum), and other substrate materials (e.g., gallium arsenide).

Physical Vapour Deposition (Sputter): Lesker PVD 75

For depositing conductive materials for multilayer microchip fabrication, microelectronic circuits, MEMS, etc., and for depositing composites to form thin layers of functional materials.

Stylus Profilometer: Bruker DektakXT

For measuring characteristics (height, thickness, depth, or roughness) of materials and surfaces.

  • CMC Microsystems
  • GreenCentre Canada
  • Spectra Plasmonics