Georgia Institute of Technology researchers said the technique, known as thermochemical nanolithography, might allow industry to produce a variety of nanopatterned structures, including nanocircuits, at a speed and scale that could make their manufacture commercially viable.

Using an atomic force microscope, researchers heat a silicon tip and run it over a thin polymer film. The heat from the tip induces a chemical reaction at the surface of the film that changes the film's chemical reactivity and transforms it from a hydrophobic substance to a hydrophilic one that can stick to other molecules.

Using the new technique, researchers were able to pattern with dimensions down to 12 nanometers in width in a variety of environments.

The research, which has potential applications in electronics, nanofluidics and medicine, appeared earlier this year in the journal Nano Letters.