Macroscopic Addressable Arrays of Block Copolymers With Areal Densities of 10 Terabit/inch2 and Beyond @ University of Massachusetts Amherst

A collaboration between researchers funded by the DOE and NSF-supported MRSEC and CHM at UC Berkeley and UMASS Amherst has led to a breakthrough in the areal density of templates derived from block copolymers (BCPs) having orientational registry over macroscopic distances. The facets on a reconstructed single crystal surface, like sapphire, were used to guide and direct the self-assembly of BCPs having 3 nm cylindrical domains over arbitrarily large surfaces. Grazing incidence x-ray scattering (GISAXS) quantitatively demonstrated the perfection in the orientational order and the quasi-crystalline long-range lateral order of the 10.5 Tbit/in.2 arrays. The unprecedented small size of the domains will revolutionize bit patterned storage media, while the ordering achieved over macroscopic distance opens avenues to the fabrication of directed self-assembly of BCPs for addressable media.