Free-Standing Membranes with Self-Assembled Nanopore Arrays for Tem Observation of Liquid Samples

This work presents a method for creating freestanding, uniform nanopore arrays onto two-dimensional (2D) membranes such as silicon using AAO (anodic aluminum oxide) as an etching mask for jointly duplicating identical patterns, with an application of such silicon as holding chambers for in-situ liquid TEM (transmission electron microscopy) observations. By sandwiching the nanopatterned silicon between two sheets of graphene, liquid samples can be trapped and observed in real time. The given methods can provide guidelines in creating freestanding nanopatterned materials as well as applications for in situ liquid cell TEM observations.