Nanoscale patterning of thin liquid films on solid surfaces

A method for nanoscale patterning of molecularly thin liquids on solid surfaces has been demonstrated. A template surface structure was fabricated by a probe oxidation method and a molecularly thin liquid film was applied to it. The intermolecular interaction between the liquid and solid surfaces is varied by the thickness of the nano-oxide structure and this causes the local variations of the wettability. The method provides liquid patterns with desired shapes on nanometer scale, such as a line with a width of less than $100nm$ and a nanodroplet with a volume of less than $100‐zeptoliters$⁠.