| In this thesis, I study the nanolithography of gallium arsenide samples by local oxidation with an atomic force microscope (AFM). I examine the current theoretical descriptions of the reaction kinetics and compare the results to experimental data. The main goal is to characterize the AFM oxidation process such that high quality features can be routinely patterned. I also investigate the use of alternative oxidation environments in an attempt to improve the height and aspect ratio of the AFM local oxidation features. An alternative lithography technique involving scratching under a high contact force is also studied. Finally, I discuss the steps that are necessary in order to fabricate a quantum structure with the AFM local oxidation lithography technique. |
