Direct-write milling of diamond by a focused oxygen ion beam

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates the use of focused oxygen ion beams for direct-write nanofabrication on single crystal diamond, analyzing damage and post-processing methods to improve material quality.

Contribution

It introduces a novel method for milling diamond with oxygen ions and evaluates damage removal techniques, advancing diamond nanofabrication capabilities.

Findings

Damage layer can be effectively removed by electron beam induced chemical etching.

Oxygen ion milling preserves diamond quality after post-processing.

Focused oxygen ion beam enables high-resolution direct-write nanofabrication.

Abstract

Recent advances in focused ion beam technology have enabled high-resolution, direct-write nanofabrication using light ions. Studies with light ions to date have, however, focused on milling of materials where sub-surface ion beam damage does not inhibit device performance. Here we report on direct-write milling of single crystal diamond using a focused beam of oxygen ions. Material quality is assessed by Raman and luminescence analysis, and reveals that the damage layer generated by oxygen ions can be removed by nonintrusive post-processing methods such as localised electron beam induced chemical etching.