in a lithographic process suitable for use in the manufacture of electronic components , oxidative reactions are employed to reproducibly fabricate patterns having micro - or nano - scale dimensions . an electrically - conductive template is fabricated to have a nanometer - scale sharp edge and describe a pattern having a micron - scale length . the oxidative reaction is mediated by a water meniscus connecting the sharp edge of the template and an oxidizable substrate . one suitable substrate is graphene . the template can be controllably positioned using a light lever method .