DigitalCommons@Linfield

Building and Testing a Photolithography System

Jereld R. Nicholson Library

Photolithography is a technique used to deposit metals onto substrates in specific patterns. The process uses light to transfer geometric patterns onto a light sensitive photoresist on the surface of a substrate. We have built a low-cost, maskless photolithography system assembled from a computer, a consumer projector, and a microscope. The photoresist is spun in a modified food processor and baked on a standard hot plate. Exposing the photoresist only takes a few minutes and allows for multiple runs on the same substrate in a short amount of time. Through multiple exposures, we can make features ranging from approximately 1 μm to 785 μm, which is especially useful when making contacts using the large features. The goal for this photolithography system is to make small electrical leads to study graphene, a two-dimensional material.