Top-down structure and device fabrication using in situ nanomachining

We demonstrate the potential of an alternative tool for the fabrication of nanoscale structures and devices. A nanoindenter integrated with an atomic force microscope is shown to be a powerful machine tool for cutting precise length nanowires or nanobelts and for manipulating the shortened wires. We also demonstrate its utility in cutting grooves and fabricating dents (or periodic arrays of dents) in ZnS nanobelts. This approach permits the direct mechanical machining of nanodevices that are supported on a substrate without the inherent complications of e beam or photolithography.