Abstract
Nanostenciling is an ideal technique for fabricating atomically clean nanostructures because of its resist-free process, i.e., vacuum deposition through a free-standing shadow mask. We have applied this method to grow metal electrodes separated by 200 to 500 nm on a substrate in ultrahigh vacuum. Without breaking vacuum, these fine electrodes can be electrically connected to outer instruments; this allows in situ electron transport measurements of atomically thin nanowires grown within the electrode gap. Two types of markers also produced via the shadow mask navigate an operator towards the electrode gap, enabling its scanning tunneling microscope (STM) observations. It is demonstrated that the conductance of erbium disilicide nanowires identified with an STM can be measured using the stenciled electrodes.