Submicron structures of the charge-density-wave conductor NbSe3

We have lithographically patterned small wire structures into a 0.35 μm thin crystal of the charge-density-wave (CDW) conductor NbSe3. Voltage-probe spacings down to 0.5 μm have been realized. Electrical transport measurements show that the electron-beam patterning process has not degraded the NbSe3 material of the structures. Both the resistivity and the threshold field for CDW sliding agree with reported data on thin unpatterned crystals. The wire structures permit the study of mesoscopic CDW transport. At the shortest length scales, first observations show a reduction of the phase-slip voltage and, below 50 K, strong fluctuations and hysteresis effects in the current-voltage characteristics.