ABSTRACT
Methods and technologies for nanolithography and nanopatterning are currently being pushed to their limits to create smaller and smaller structures with highly elaborate functionalities. ese technologies include electronic circuits that are shrunk to the nanoscale or nanosensors that are based on a special arrangement of biomolecules. Current research activities also include the spatially well-de ned modi cation of surface properties such as wettability, adhesion, friction, or tailored speci c chemical interaction. In the future, the controlled positioning of individual nanoparticles, molecules, and even atoms will enable new chemical reaction paths that are based on a guided self-assembly. ese activities include the quest for nanostructured surface functionalization and directed self-assembly of nanoscale objects (Geissler and Xia, 2004). e controlled positioning of particles, clusters, or single molecules allows for the investigation of new chemical processes, tailored molecular interaction, and the direct assembly of new chemical compounds (Heckl, 2004).
