Mems nanostructures and methods of forming the same

A method of forming a plurality of MEMS nanostructures, the method comprising:

• etching a portion of a substrate to form a plurality of mesas in the substrate, wherein each of the plurality of mesas has a top surface and a sidewall surface adjacent to the top surface;
• depositing a light reflecting layer over the substrate thereby covering the top surface and the sidewall surface of each mesa;
• forming a protection layer conformally along the light reflecting layer;
• forming an anti-reflective coating (ARC) layer over the protection layer;
• forming an opening in a photo resist layer over the ARC layer over each mesa;
• removing a portion of the ARC layer, the protection layer and the light reflecting layer through the opening to expose the top of each mesa;
• and
• removing the photo resist layer and the ARC layer without substantially removing the protection layer.

A method of forming a plurality of MEMS nanostructures, the method comprising:

• recessing a portion of a substrate to form a plurality of mesas in the substrate, wherein each of the plurality of mesas has a top surface and a sidewall surface adjacent to the top surface;
• depositing a light reflecting layer over the substrate thereby covering the top surface and the sidewall surface of each mesa;
• forming a protection layer over the light reflecting layer;
• forming an anti-reflective coating (ARC) layer over the protection layer;
• forming a filling material surrounding each mesa to expose a portion of the ARC layer;
• forming an opening in a photo resist layer over the exposed ARC layer over each mesa;
• removing a portion of the exposed ARC layer, the protection layer and the light reflecting layer through the opening to expose the top of each mesa;
• and
• removing the photo resist layer and the exposed portion of the ARC layer of each mesa.