Patent ID: 7682515

Claim:
A lithographic method comprising the pressing of a substrate, the method comprising: preparing a substrate surface by forming a composite layer on the substrate, wherein forming the composite layer comprises forming an internal sub-layer of curable material in contact with the substrate surface and curing the internal sub-layer, and forming an external sub-layer adjacent to the cured internal sub-layer; pressing a mold comprising a pattern of recesses and protrusions, wherein the protrusions of the mold penetrate into the external sub-layer until the protrusions contact the internal sub-layer; performing at least one etching process in which the composite layer is etched by removing the internal sub-layer in regions defined by recesses formed in the external sub-layer until portions of a surface of the substrate have been exposed; and etching portions of the substrate exposed by the recesses using an etching pattern defined by the mold pattern.