Nikhil Tiwale

Brookhaven National Laboratory

Center for Functional Nanomaterials
Bldg. 735, Room 2021
P.O. Box 5000
Upton, NY 11973-5000

(631) 344-7896
(631) 992-2814
ntiwale@bnl.gov

Expertise | Research | Education | Appointments | Publications | Highlights | Awards

Expertise

• Micro/Nano-fabrication - Electron Beam Lithography, Photolithography
• Atomic layer deposition (ALD) & infiltration synthesis
• Oxide/hybrid semiconductors & dielectrics
• (Opto-)electronic devices & sensors

Research Activities

Nikhil is currently exploring infiltration synthesis-based material hybridization for innovation in nanolithography, nanofabrication, and (opto-)electronic devices. The key research goals include - 

• Infiltration synthesis of hybrid nanocomposite thin films for next-generation nanolithography resists and dielectrics
• CMOS-process-compatible fabrication of metal oxide nanostructured arrays, ultrathin metal oxide thin films, and hybrid perovskites for high-performance field-effect transistors (FET) & photodetectors

Education

• Ph.D., University of Cambridge, UK (2017)
  • Engineering - Solid State Electronics and Nanoscale Science
  • Dissertation Title: Zinc oxide nanowire field-effect transistors for sensor applications [DOI: 10.17863/CAM.14429]
• B.Tech. + M.Tech., Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, India (2012)
  • Metallurgical Engineering and Materials Science
  • Specialization – Ceramics and Composites
  • Dissertation Title: Multi-point optical curvature measurement setup

Professional Appointments

• Center for Functional Nanomaterials | Brookhaven National Laboratory
  Research Associate (Mar. 2018 - Present)
• Adaptix Ltd
  Silicon Process Engineer (Oct. 2017 – Mar. 2018)
• Nanoscience Centre | University of Cambridge
  Cleanroom Equipment Instructor (Apr. 2014 – May 2017)

Selected Publications

• Tiwale N, Subramanian A, Freychet G, Gann E, Kisslinger K, Lu M, Stein A, Kim J, Nam C-Y (2021) Hybrid resist synthesis by ex-situ vapor-phase infiltration of metal oxides into conventional organic resists. Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XXXVIII. doi: 10.1117/12.2583908
• Tiwale N, Senanayak SP, Rubio-Lara J, Prasad A, Aziz A, Alaverdyan Y, Welland ME (2021) Solution-Processed High-Performance ZnO Nano-FETs Fabricated with Direct-Write Electron-Beam-Lithography-Based Top-Down Route. Advanced Electronic Materials 7:2000978. doi: 10.1002/aelm.202000978
• Tiwale N, Subramanian A, Dai Z, Sikder S, Sadowski JT, Nam C-Y (2020) Large mobility modulation in ultrathin amorphous titanium oxide transistors. Communications Materials. doi: 10.1038/s43246-020-00096-w
• Tiwale N, Subramanian A, Kisslinger K, Lu M, Kim J, Stein A, Nam C-Y (2020) Infiltration synthesis of hybrid nanocomposite resists for advanced nanolithography. Advances in Patterning Materials and Processes XXXVII. doi: 10.1117/12.2552164
• Subramanian A, Tiwale N, Doerk G, Kisslinger K, Nam C-Y (2019) Enhanced Hybridization and Nanopatterning via Heated Liquid-Phase Infiltration into Self-Assembled Block Copolymer Thin Films. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 12:1444–1453. doi: 10.1021/acsami.9b16148
• Tiwale N, Subramanian A, Kisslinger K, Lu M, Kim J, Stein A, Nam C-Y (2019) Advancing next generation nanolithography with infiltration synthesis of hybrid nanocomposite resists. Journal of Materials Chemistry C 7:8803–8812. doi: 10.1039/c9tc02974e
• Tiwale N, Senanayak SP, Rubio-Lara J, Alaverdyan Y, Welland ME (2019) Optimization of Transistor Characteristics and Charge Transport in Solution Processed ZnO Thin Films Grown from Zinc Neodecanoate. Electronic Materials Letters 15:702–711. doi: 10.1007/s13391-019-00173-4
• Subramanian A, Tiwale N, Nam C-Y (2018) Review of Recent Advances in Applications of Vapor-Phase Material Infiltration Based on Atomic Layer Deposition. JOM 71:185–196. doi: 10.1007/s11837-018-3141-4
• Aziz A, Tiwale N, Hodge SA, Attwood SJ, Divitini G, Welland ME (2018) Core–Shell Electrospun Polycrystalline ZnO Nanofibers for Ultra-Sensitive NO2 Gas Sensing. ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces 10:43817–43823. doi: 10.1021/acsami.8b17149
• Tan EKW, Rughoobur G, Rubio-Lara J, Tiwale N, Xiao Z, Davidson CAB, Lowe CR, Occhipinti LG (2018) Nanofabrication of Conductive Metallic Structures on Elastomeric Materials. Scientific Reports. doi: 10.1038/s41598-018-24901-2
• Tiwale N (2015) Zinc oxide nanowire gas sensors: fabrication, functionalisation and devices. Materials Science and Technology 31:1681–1697. doi: 10.1179/1743284714y.0000000747

Research Highlights

• Nikhil Tiwale: Practicing the Art of Nanofabrication
• Enhancing Materials for Hi-Res Patterning to Advance Microelectronics

Awards & Recognition

• Winner of the Poster Presentation Session (NSLS-II and CFN Users' Meeting 2019)

• Outstanding Oral Presentation Award (Early Career Research Symposium 2018)