Abstract
We present the use of scanning probe oxidation of Si 3 N 4 masks for performing nanolithography, nanomachining, and nanoscale epitaxial growth on silicon. Three most unique features of this approach are presented: (i) exceptionally fast oxidation kinetics using silicon nitride masks (∼30 μm/s at 10 V for a ≈5 nm thick film), (ii) selective-area anisotropic etching of Si using a Si 3 N 4 etch mask, (iii) selective-area chemical vapor deposition of Si using a SiO 2 /Si 3 N 4 bilayer growth mask.