Robotic handling inside the SEM is well known, but mostly a teleoperated task, but automation of in-situ handling would be highly advantageous and could enable serious production and assembly in the SEM. However, reliable techniques who facilitate an automation are still lacking. Especially the positioning along the optical axis of the SEM remains as a major challenge. In this paper, an universal approach addressing this particular issue is proposed, allowing to assist and improve handling and assembly task. The approach exploits typical charging effects in the SEM and derives information about the positions of objects and end-effectors as well as about assembly statuses. Assembly accuracies better than 100nm are achieved and controlled approaching speeds of 10 μm/s.

The AFM is a common tool for ultra-precise surface characterization and a standard instrument a variety of research and development disciplines. However, the characterization of three dimensional high-aspect ratio and sidewall structures remains a hardly accomplishable task. Novel exchangeable and customizable scanning probe tips - NanoBits - can be attached to standard AFM cantilevers offering unprecedented freedom in adapting the shape and size of the tips. These NanoBits of few μm size have to be assembled into micro-cartridges. This challenging assembly task is performed inside the SEM by a micro-gripper. A powerful automation framework has been developed facilitating image based automation and visual servoing for this task. Template matching, BLOB-detection, and special SEM-based detection approaches are used to achieve the automated assembly.

In this paper, a nanorobotic system containing a custom-made nanohandling robot, atomic force microscope, scanning electron microscope and focused ion beam is presented. The nanorobotic atomic force microscope system facilitates the analysis of nanostructured surfaces as well as the handling of nanoobjects. Furthermore, a gas injection system is available that enables particle beam-based structuring and deposition of nanomaterials. This combination provides an enabling technology for the hybrid processing, manipulation and characterization of nanomaterials.

Modern processes of micro- and nanofabrication imply several metrology steps on critical dimensions in order to assure and assess device perfomences. Particularly, manufacturing processes of novel disruptive photonic devices and nanoelectronic circuit architectures require improved three dimensional acquisition and visualization techniques for their metrology. Amongst others line width and sidewall roughness are the most important parameters for nanooptical components but the determination of these parameters becomes increasingly demanding, since the continuous shrinkage of these devices demand an even higher lateral resolution of the measurements. The atomic force microscope (AFM) is a common tool for this characterization and a standard instrument for all kinds of research and development disciplines. However, the characterization of three dimensional high-aspect ratio and sidewall structures remains a hardly accomplishable task. Novel exchangeable and customizable scanning probe tips, so-called NanoBits, can be attached to standard AFM cantilevers offering unprecedented freedom in adapting the shape and size of the tips to the surface topology of the specific application. The ultimate goal is the realization of an in-situ exchange of NanoBits within the regular AFM environment. For this, NanoBits have to be provided in a freestanding way, making them accessible for the AFM cantilever. The direct fabrication of such structures is still challenging, hence the robotic preassembly of NanoBits cartridges is proposed, where every cartridge can carry several different NanoBits. Within this paper all components required for the realization of this concept are presented.

This paper presents the usage of a nanorobotic handling technique for the transfer of individual copper-nanowires with diameters between 150nm and 400nm and length of about 10 μm. Handling and assembly are inside the SEM and use electron beam induced deposition as well as focused ion beam milling. The handled nanowires are used to assembly a NEMS device, namely an electrostatic switch design, where the nanowire acts as switching contact. Working principle, reproducibility and specific values of the switches are investigated, as well as the conductivity of the nanowires themself.

In this paper, a focused ion beam processing technique is presented that facilitates the modification of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in terms of length, diameter, and orientation. The CNTs are mounted onto an atomic force microscope (AFM) probe by using a nanorobotic microgripper-based pick-and-place handling strategy. Such CNT-enhanced AFM probes are needed for metrology measurements of nanostructures with critical dimensions and high aspect ratios. The complete process of assembly and processing is realized inside a nanorobotic dual beam scanning electron microscope (SEM) and focused ion beam (FIB) machine.

The integration of biomaterials into micro/nano-sensors or micro/nano-systems is expected to improve the properties of such systems or even lead to the development of novel innovative systems. A key problem to be solved beforehand is the development and realization of proper preparation, handling and manipulation methods with respect to an industrial usage. To enable such a usage, the methods have to be automatable, robust to environmental changes as well as feasible in a scanning electron microscope (SEM). According to these points, the target of the presented efforts is to develop these methods for a future design of nanoelectronic parts and to solve packaging problems at the nanoscale. As a consequence, the paper presents a novel concept for the usage of biomaterials, such as DNA and wood fibers/fibrils, for the packaging at the nanoscale. Novel methods for the DNA-handling with an atomic force microscope (AFM) at dry conditions, which can also be used in the vacuum chamber of a SEM will be presented as well as wood fibers/fibrils manipulation methods in the SEM.