Nano-processing with gas cluster ion beams

The gas cluster ion beam process has become a candidate technique for advanced nano-fabrication, where both throughput and precise functionality are required. It is demonstrated that both extreme high-speed and precise nano-processing with low damage can be realized using reactive cluster ion beams. To date, this technique has been successfully applied to photonic, magnetic, electronic, and biological materials processing. The energy and size of cluster have become well controllable and many kinds of gaseous materials become available as cluster source gas. The fundamentals and applications of gas cluster ion beam process are reviewed in this paper.