Moiré Nanolithography Based on Ultrathin Anodized Aluminium Oxide Membranes

A new nanofabrication method for construction of complex superlattice structure with versatile super-periodicity is developed using the moiré fringe of anodized aluminium oxide (AAO) membranes. Two ultrathin AAO membranes with long-range order holes are stacked to form 2D moiré nanopatterns. Both rotational symmetry and the periodicity of the holes are modified by the relative spatial displacement between the superimposing layers. Using the membranes as metal evaporation masks, a wide assortment of complex Al nanostructures are fabricated by varying the misorientation angle of the two ultrathin AAO membranes. Highly ordered Al nanoparticles with different sizes, shapes, orientations, and arrangements on substrates are achieved, which are expected to give abundant surface plasmon mode.