Abstract
Nanometer-scale lithography was performed by applying the local electric field of scanning tunneling microscope (STM) to an oligosilane Langmuir-Blodgett (LB) film composed of tridecamethylhexasilanylacetic acid ( MeSi6AA) transferred onto a facet of a gold single crystal. After halting the probe tip and applying a higher bias voltage than is usual for STM imaging with feedback on, holes with diameters of 30–50 nm appeared. The formation of the holes depended on the polarity and bias applied. These results are accounted for because the electron beam emitted from the tip under high electric field broke the LB film. It was also discovered that fixation of the tip by making the feedback off could create holes with diameters of less than 10 nm.