Abstract: Provided herein is an apparatus, including a substrate; an etch stop layer overlying the substrate, wherein the etch stop layer is substantially resistant to etching conditions; and a patterned layer overlying the etch stop layer, wherein the patterned layer is substantially labile to the etching conditions, and wherein the patterned layer comprises a number of features including substantially consistent feature profiles among regions of high feature density and regions of low feature density.

Abstract: Provided herein are methods for depositing a spin-on-glass composition over an imprinted resist; curing the spin-on-glass composition to form a cured spin-on-glass composition; and forming a patterned mask by etching the cured spin-on-glass composition, the resist, and an underlying mask composition, wherein the patterned mask comprises features of the cured spin-on-glass composition atop the mask composition, and wherein curing the spin-on-glass composition is configured to prevent shifting or toppling of the spin-on glass composition from atop the mask composition while forming the patterned mask.

Abstract: A method is disclosed that includes forming at least one substrate alignment mark and at least one lithography alignment mark in a substrate; forming a seed layer on the substrate; and forming a guide pattern and at least one guide pattern alignment mark in the seed layer, where the at least one guide pattern alignment mark is formed over the at least one substrate alignment mark. The method further includes determining an alignment error of the at least one guide pattern alignment mark relative to the at least one substrate alignment mark; and patterning features on at least one region of the substrate, where the features are positioned on the substrate based on the at least one lithography alignment mark and the alignment error.

Abstract: The embodiments disclose a method of creating two-sided template from a single recorded master, including fabricating a first template using a single recorded master, wherein the first template has a changed duty cycle and an unchanged servo arc orientation, creating a replicate of the first template, wherein the replicate has a mirrored servo arc orientation and a changed duty cycle and fabricating a second template using the replicate to produce a predetermined mirrored servo arc orientation and a predetermined duty cycle for imprinting on a second side of a patterned stack.

Abstract: Processes include aligning a disc with a template at a location so that the pattern from the template is transferred to the disc in a relative orientation. The relative orientation provides that when the disc with the transferred pattern is finally assembled into a hard disc drive, an inner diameter of the spindle hole of the disc may be abutted against an outer diameter of the disc drive spindle, and the data-containing patterns on the discs will be aligned concentrically with a center of the disc drive spindle. While the data-containing patterns are aligned concentrically with the disc drive spindle, the substrate itself is allowed to be non-concentric.

Abstract: The embodiments disclose a method of creating two-sided template from a single recorded master, including fabricating a first template using a single recorded master, wherein the first template has a changed duty cycle and an unchanged servo arc orientation, creating a replicate of the first template, wherein the replicate has a mirrored servo arc orientation and a changed duty cycle and fabricating a second template using the replicate to produce a predetermined mirrored servo arc orientation and a predetermined duty cycle for imprinting on a second side of a patterned stack.

Abstract: The embodiments disclose a method for an electron curing reverse-tone process, including depositing an etch-resistant layer onto a patterned imprinted resist layer fabricated onto a hard mask layer deposited onto a substrate, curing the etch-resistant layer using an electron beam dose during etching processes of imprinted pattern features into the hard mask and into the substrate and using analytical processes to quantify reduced pattern feature placement drift errors and to quantify increased pattern feature size uniformity of imprinted pattern features etched.

Abstract: Resist imprinting void reduction method may include sealing a chamber. The chamber may be filled with an ambient inert gas, wherein the inert gas a solubility in a resist layer on a substrate greater than Helium. The method may also include establishing a pressure within the chamber sufficient to cause absorption of the ambient inert gas by the resist layer, and sufficient to suppress evaporation of the resist layer.

Abstract: The embodiments disclose a method of surface tension control to reduce trapped gas bubbles in an imprint including modifying chemistry aspects of interfacial surfaces of an imprint template and a substrate to modify surface tensions, differentiating the interfacial surface tensions to control interfacial flow rates of a pre-cured liquid resist and controlling pre-cured liquid resist interfacial flow rates to reduce trapping gas and prevent trapped gas bubble defects in cured imprinted resist.

Abstract: A system and method for optical calibration discs includes dispensing a resist layer on a portion of a substrate. A surface of the substrate and a topographically patterned surface of predetermined objects of a template are contacted together, wherein the contacting causes the resist layer between the portion of the substrate and the template to conform to the topographically patterned surface, and the resist layer includes nano-scale voids. The nano-scale voids are reduced by longer spread time, thinner resist, and removal of the residual resist layer together with the voids by using a descum step. The resist layer is hardened into a negative image of the topographically patterned surface, wherein the negative image includes surfaces that are operable to be individually measured by an optical reader. The substrate and the template are separated, wherein the resist layer adheres to the surface of the substrate.

Abstract: The embodiments disclose a method of fabricating a stack, including replacing a metal layer of a stack imprint structure with an oxide layer, patterning the oxide layer stack using chemical etch processes to transfer the pattern image and cleaning etch residue from the stack imprint structure to substantially prevent contamination of the metal layers.

Abstract: The embodiments disclose a method of stack patterning, including loading a stack into a stationary stack stage, rotating one or more ion beam grid assemblies substantially concentrically aligned with the stationary stack stage to etch the stack and controlling the operation of the one or more ion beam grid assemblies to achieve substantial axial uniformity of the etched stack.

Abstract: The embodiments disclose a method of creating two-sided template from a single recorded master, including fabricating a first template using a single recorded master, wherein the first template has a changed duty cycle and an unchanged servo arc orientation, creating a replicate of the first template, wherein the replicate has a mirrored servo arc orientation and a changed duty cycle and fabricating a second template using the replicate to produce a predetermined mirrored servo arc orientation and a predetermined duty cycle for imprinting on a second side of a patterned stack.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of manufacturing a patterned media Ni stamper comprising depositing a perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane release layer. The release layer eliminates bonding at the master-stamper interface. A permanent master for manufacturing a patterned media stamper is also provided.

Abstract: A method and apparatus of thermal imprint lithography includes moving an imprinter against a surface to be imprinted, supplying energy to a layer of heating material, and forming features in the surface to be imprinted. The imprinter comprises a main body and the layer of heating material under the main body. In an embodiment the layer of heating material is electrically heated. In alternate embodiments, the layer of heating material is optically heated.

Abstract: In an imprint lithography process, a carbon overcoat (COC) layer has nitrogen introduced into an upper surface region thereof before application of an adhesion layer to the COC/substrate combination. This results in the formation of a thin layer of nitrogenated carbon at the surface of the COC layer that promotes covalent bonding with the functional groups of the adhesion layer and, thus, significantly improves resist adhesion upon imprint template removal. Thus, an embodiment of an imprint lithography method comprises introducing nitrogen into an upper surface region of the COC layer, forming an adhesion layer on the nitrogenated COC layer, forming resist on the adhesion layer, contacting the resist with an imprint template having patterned features formed therein such that the resist fills the patterned features of the imprint template, and separating the imprint template from the resist such that a negative image of the patterned features is formed in the resist.

Abstract: Processes include aligning a disc with a template at a location so that the pattern from the template is transferred to the disc in a relative orientation. The relative orientation provides that when the disc with the transferred pattern is finally assembled into a hard disc drive, an inner diameter of the spindle hole of the disc may be abutted against an outer diameter of the disc drive spindle, and the data-containing patterns on the discs will be aligned concentrically with a center of the disc drive spindle. While the data-containing patterns are aligned concentrically with the disc drive spindle, the substrate itself is allowed to be non-concentric.

Abstract: The invention relates to a method of manufacturing a patterned media Ni stamper comprising depositing a perfluorodecyltrichlorosilane release layer. The release layer eliminates bonding at the master-stamper interface. A permanent master for manufacturing a patterned media stamper is also provided.

Abstract: A method of performing imprint lithography of a surface substrate includes a stamper having a thin lubricant coating thereon to facilitate release of the stamper from the imprinted surface to reduce degradation of image replication. Embodiments of the invention include stampers suitable for use in patterning servo information on magnetic recording media having a lubricant coating of from about 1 nm to about 20 nm.

Abstract: A method of fabricating a patterned magnetic layer comprises sequential steps of: (a) providing a workpiece comprising a non-magnetic substrate, a layer of magnetic material overlying a surface of the substrate, and a layer of a non-magnetic material overlying the layer of magnetic material; (b) forming a layer of a mask material on the layer of non-magnetic material; (c) forming a topographical pattern comprising a plurality of recesses in the layer of mask material; (d) selectively removing portions of the layer of non-magnetic material proximate lower portions of the recesses, thereby exposing selected portions of the layer of magnetic material; (e) treating the exposed portions of the layer of magnetic material with a liquid for reducing the magnetic properties thereof; and (f) removing the topographically patterned layer of mask material.