Nanosphere lithography

Nanosphere lithography (NSL) is an economical technique for generating single-layer hexagonally close packed or similar patterns of nanoscale features. Generally, NSL applies planar ordered arrays of nanometer-sized latex or silica spheres as lithography masks to fabricate nanoparticle arrays. NSL uses self-assembled monolayers of spheres (typically made of polystyrene) as evaporation masks. This method has been used to fabricate arrays of gold nanodots with precisely controlled spacings.