Topographies of plasma-hardened surfaces of poly(dimethylsiloxane)

Journal Article · Mon Nov 15 00:00:00 EST 2010 · Journal of Applied Physics

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1063/1.3482020· OSTI ID:21476603

Goerrn, Patrick; Wagner, Sigurd ^[1]

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1. Department of Electrical Engineering and Princeton Institute for the Science and Technology of Materials, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544 (United States)

We studied the formation of surface layers hardened by plasma-enhanced oxidation of the silicone elastomer poly(dimethylsiloxane). We explored the largest parameter space surveyed to date. The surface layers may wrinkle, crack, or both, under conditions that at times are controlled by design, but more often have been discovered by trial-and-error. We find four distinct topographies: flat/wrinkled/cracked/cracked and wrinkled. Each topography is clearly separated in the space of plasma dose versus plasma pressure. We analyzed wrinkle amplitude and wavelength by atomic force microscopy in the tapping mode. From these dimensions we calculated the elastic modulus and thickness of the hard surface layer, and inferred a graded hardness, by employing a modified theoretical model. Our main result is the identification of the parameters under which the technologically important pure wrinkled, crack-free topography is obtained.

• OSTI ID: 21476603
• Journal Information: Journal of Applied Physics, Vol. 108, Issue 9; Other Information: DOI: 10.1063/1.3482020; (c) 2010 American Institute of Physics; ISSN 0021-8979
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
75 CONDENSED MATTER PHYSICS
SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND SUPERFLUIDITY
ATOMIC FORCE MICROSCOPY
CRACKS
ELASTICITY
ELASTOMERS
HARDNESS
LAYERS
OXIDATION
PLASMA
PROCESSING
SILICONES
SURFACES
YOUNG MODULUS
CHEMICAL REACTIONS
MECHANICAL PROPERTIES
MICROSCOPY
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC SILICON COMPOUNDS
POLYMERS
SILOXANES