GaAs spin injector microcantilever probe assembly via a releasable 'epitaxial patch technology'

S. Arscott (1) , Emilien Peytavit (1) , Duong Vu (2) , Alistair C.H. Rowe (2) , Daniel Paget (2)

1 IEMN - Institut d’Électronique, de Microélectronique et de Nanotechnologie - UMR 8520
2 PMC - Physique de la Matière Condensée

We demonstrate that GaAs spin injector microcantilever probes can be produced using a novel releasable “epitaxial patch technology” assembly approach as apposed to a monolithic fabrication route i.e. surface/bulk micromachining. The GaAs microcantilevers are attached to fused silica support wafers; thus taking advantage of the optical and spin properties of GaAs and the mechanical properties of the silica. The microcantilever probes have been characterized for their spin injection properties and also used as atomic force microscopy (AFM) probes to evaluate their imagining capabilities. The assembly involved the production of released epitaxial semiconductor “patches” having a micrometer thickness. These patches are then assembled onto a pre-fabricated fused silica support wafer. AFM characterization revealed a resonant frequency and quality factor equal to commercial silicon-based AFM probes together with high quality images; the spin injection characterization demonstrated injected photocurrents of tens of nA and a spin polarization of .

Mots clés: Microsystems; MEMS; Microtechnology; Assembly; Epitaxy; Spin; Spintronics

Domaines: Sciences de l'ingénieur [physics]

S. Arscott, Emilien Peytavit, Duong Vu, Alistair C.H. Rowe, Daniel Paget. GaAs spin injector microcantilever probe assembly via a releasable 'epitaxial patch technology'. Proc. Eurosensors XXIV 2010, Sep 2010, Linz, Austria. pp.1039-1042, ⟨10.1016/j.proeng.2010.09.287⟩. ⟨hal-02345820⟩