Pick-up and drop transfer of diamond nanosheets

TL;DR

This paper presents a versatile pick-up and drop transfer technique for nanocrystalline diamond nanosheets, enabling their use in electronic, optical, and mechanical devices, including heterostructures with 2D materials.

Contribution

The authors introduce a novel transfer method for NCD nanosheets that simplifies device fabrication and broadens application possibilities without lithography or wet processing.

Findings

NCD nanosheets as thin as 55 nm can be transferred between substrates.

Devices and resonators fabricated demonstrate functional properties.

NCD nanosheets can be integrated with optical fibers and 2D materials.

Abstract

Nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) is a promising material for electronic and mechanical micro- and nanodevices. Here we introduce a versatile pick-up and drop technique that makes it possible to investigate the electrical, optical and mechanical properties of as-grown NCD films. Using this technique, NCD nanosheets, as thin as 55 nm, can be picked-up from a growth substrate and positioned on another substrate. As a proof of concept, electronic devices and mechanical resonators are fabricated and their properties are characterized. In addition, the versatility of the method is further explored by transferring NCD nanosheets onto an optical fibre, which allows measuring its optical absorption. Finally, we show that NCD nanosheets can also be transferred onto 2D crystals, such as MoS2, to fabricate heterostructures. Pick-up and drop transfer enables the fabrication of a variety of NCD-based devices without requiring lithography or wet processing.