Abstract

Optical lithography is used in the manufacture of microchips to etch patterns on silicon wafers. Because of diffraction, the size of these patterns is limited by the wavelength of the light used. The authors present a new lithographic protocol that uses the quantum properties of light. With this new technique, it is possible to beat the diffraction limit and, in principle, continue the miniaturization process until the atomic scale is reached.

[Optical Society of America ]