Collective behavior of block copolymer thin films within periodic topographical structures

We perform a systematic study of the effect of adjacent nanostructures on the confinement of block copolymers (BCP) within pre-patterned trenches in 100 nm thick SiO2 films. Asymmetric PS-b-PMMA BCP with a styrene fraction of 0.71, M-n = 67100 are used. When deposited in the form of thin film, these BCP naturally self-organize upon annealing and form a PS matrix with hexagonally packed PMMA cylinders perpendicularly oriented with respect to the substrate. An accurate study of the confinement of this BCP thin film within isolated trenches is performed as a function of their width (80-260 nm). In this specific configuration the confinement of the BCP thin film within the pre-patterned structures has only been partially achieved. The effect of adjacent trenches on the arrangement of the BCP thin film is investigated using parallel trenches periodically distributed on the surface. The effective confinement of the BCP film is strongly modified by the periodicity of the pre-patterned structures.