Methods for forming electronic devices from nanomaterials

Abstract

A multi-scale manufacturing system comprising a centrally located multi-axis and multi-dimensional first manipulating component associated with a housing for manipulating a substrate and a template, a control subsystem coupled to the first manipulating component for controlling movement thereof, a pre-alignment subsystem for pre-aligning the substrate and the template, an assembly station for applying nanomaterial to the template, an alignment station for aligning the template and the substrate together to form a workpiece assembly, and a transfer subsystem for applying pressure to the workpiece assembly for transferring the nanomaterial from the template to the substrate.

We claim: 
     
         1 . A method for fabricating a nanostructure from nanomaterial, comprising
 providing a centrally located multi-axis and multi-dimensional first manipulating component associated with a housing for manipulating a substrate and a template,   placing the substrate in a pre-alignment subsystem for pre-aligning the substrate,   removing the substrate from the pre-alignment subsystem and the placing the substrate in an alignment subsystem,   pre-aligning the template,   removing the template from the pre-alignment subsystem and then transferring the template to an assembly subsystem,   applying nanomaterial to the template in the assembly subsystem to form the nanostructure,   drying the template once the nanomaterial is applied thereto in the assembly subsystem,   removing the template from the assembly subsystem with the first manipulating component and then transferring the template to the alignment subsystem,   aligning the template with the substrate to form a workpiece assembly,   transferring the workpiece assembly with the first manipulating component from the alignment subsystem to a transfer subsystem,   when in the transfer subsystem, transferring the nanomaterial from the template to the substrate and then separating the template from the substrate,   with the first manipulating component, removing the substrate and the template from the transfer assembly, and   controlling movement of the first manipulating component between the subsystems.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising, when the template is processed in the assembly subsystem, placing the template in a first reservoir containing the nanomaterial by a second manipulating component, removing the template from the first reservoir with the second manipulating component, translating the second manipulating component horizontally, placing the template in a second reservoir to air dry the template, removing the template from the second reservoir with the second manipulating component, and then transferring the template from the second manipulating component to the first manipulating component. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 2 , further comprising, when the workpiece assembly is processed in the transfer subsystem, applying pressure to the workpiece assembly so as to transfer the nanomaterial from the template to the substrate, and then applying air pressure between the template and the substrate so as separate the template from the substrate. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3 , further comprising removing the substrate from the transfer subsystem with the first manipulating component and then transferring the substrate to a loading station. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 4 , further comprising removing the template from the transfer subsystem with the first manipulating component and then transferring the substrate to the loading station. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising forming nanowells on the template for holding the nanomaterial. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising clustering the pre-alignment subsystem, the alignment subsystem, the assembly subsystem and the transfer subsystem about the first manipulating component.