Reversely toposelective vapor deposition at normal pressure and temperature by capillary condensation

Abstract

Modern technology is heavily dependent on a family of vapor deposition methods where thin coatings are formed by introducing gaseous reagents on solid substrates. However, a major drawback in these methods is the difficulty in miniaturizing them to complex nanoscaled structures. Based on capillary condensation, the curvature/capillary selective vapor deposition method is able to coat nanostructures selectively starting from the previously hardest-to-reach surfaces, ledges, interstices, and pores, while leaving the external surfaces in or near their native state. This method requires no pumping, purification or purging, heating or expensive apparatus, and the presence of small amounts of oxygen was shown to improve the process. Finally, studying the fundamentals of the proposed method is hypothesized to create a foundation for a novel vapor deposition paradigm for toposelective coating methods in nano- and micron-scale structures.