Massively parallel scanning probe nanolithography

Direct-writing lithographic processes such as electron-beam lithography or techniques based on Scanning Probe Microscopy (SPM) are sequential, and therefore have a low throughput. This paper discusses parallel approaches to SPM lithography that use multiple tips to achieve high throughputs. Algorithms are presented for planning the motion of an SPM multi-tip array so as to write complex patterns in an efficient, parallel manner. The input is a set of features (polygons) defined in the Caltech Intermediate Format (CIF), which is a de facto standard used by most electronic Computer-Aided Design systems. Simulation results are presented to validate the approach.