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
Specialized labs and equipment
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. |
Private and public sector research partners
- CMC Microsystems
- GreenCentre Canada
- Spectra Plasmonics
Additional information
Title | URL |
---|---|
Nano research yields sensing breakthrough | https://www.cmc.ca/nano-research-yields-sensing-breakthrough/ |
Science on a small scale | http://nanofabkingston.ca/wp-content/uploads/2017/05/Science-on-a-small-scale.pdf |
Queen’s unveils renewed nano-tech laboratory | https://www.queensjournal.ca/story/2017-01-20/news/queens-unveils-renewed-nano-tech-labratory/ |
Big plans for nanotechnology | https://www.thewhig.com/2017/01/20/big-plans-for-nanotechnology/wcm/5c43fa86-8c43-ffc3-cec7-fcdd828… |
Thinking big on a small scale | https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/stories/thinking-big-small-scale |
Exploring the promise of the quantum realm | https://www.queensu.ca/gazette/stories/exploring-promise-quantum-realm?utm_source=e-queens-gazette_staff |