Journal of Microwave Power and Electromagnetic Energy (JMPEE)
TITLE	Polymerization and Surface Treatment in a Large Volume Microwave Plasma Generator [PDF]
AUTHORS	H. Jullien and R.G. Bosisio 1983 18 4 319-324
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Abstract Several experiments are reported on the curing and cross-linking of polymer films deposited on metals and non-metals with the aim of evaluating the large volume microwave plasma generator (LMP®) technology. The LMP® technology allows, in principle, the generation of a low-temperature plasma of any desired length and it is therefore of great interest in industrial processes involving the treatment of large surface areas. This paper attempts to evaluate some plasma-polymer coatings produced on various metallic and non-metallic surfaces. It is shown that polyurethane films deposited on metal surfaces are effectively and quickly cross-linked when exposed to an argon microwave plasma; in addition, plasma-polymer coatings were formed from styrene and methylmethacrylate vapours introduced into the LMP reactor. The deposition of such plasma-polymers produced, in most cases, resistant and strongly adhesive coatings. However, the plasma-polymer coating was not found to possess a regular structure. Instead it is found that the plasma-polymer structure varies owing to degradation and recombination reactions, especially with respect to the aromatic rings in styrene. The deposition of plasma-polymer films is of current interest in a number of industries concerned with semiconductors, environmental protection of surfaces, surface modifications, biological applications, optical surfaces, etc.