“We’re exploring methods to create these defects on demand so we can place them where we want to,” Jesse said. “Since STEMs have atomic-scale imaging capabilities, and we work with very thin materials that are only a few atoms in thickness, we can see every atom. So, we are manipulating matter at the atomic scale in real time. That’s the goal, and we are actually achieving it.”
To demonstrate the method, the researchers moved an e-beam back and forth over a graphene lattice, creating minuscule holes. They inserted tin atoms into those holes and achieved a continuous, atom-by-atom, direct writing process thereby populating the exact same places where the carbon atom had been with tin atoms.
“We believe that atomic-scale synthesis processes could become a matter of routine using relatively simple strategies. When coupled with automated beam control and AI-driven analysis and discovery, the synthescope concept offers a window into atomic synthesis processes and a unique approach to atomic-scale manufacturing,” Jesse said.
To learn more about licensing opportunities for this technology, contact commercialization manager Leslie Smith at smithlm@ornl.gov. Browse ORNL’s portfolio of analytical instrumentation technologies available for licensing.
The research was funded by the DOE Office of Science.
UT-Battelle manages ORNL for DOE’s Office of Science, the single largest supporter of basic research in the physical sciences in the United States. DOE’s Office of Science is working to address some of the most pressing challenges of our time. For more information, visit https://energy.gov/science. — Lawrence Bernard
This Oak Ridge National Laboratory news article "‘Writing’ with atoms could transform materials fabrication for quantum devices" was originally found on https://www.ornl.gov/news
