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Atomic force microscope studies of environmental sensitive polymer


EMSL Project ID
1623

Abstract

Polymers have been applied successfully in fields such as adhesion, biomaterails, protective coating, friction and wear, composites, microelectronics devices, and thin-film technology. In general, special surface properties such as chemical composition, hydrophilicity, roughness, crystalinity, conductivity, lubricity and crosslinking density are required for the success of these applications. It is well known that the surface of materials grafted by environmental sensitivity polymer can be used as separation membrane, cell-cultured substrate and chemical valve. One project relative with the preparation and grafting of environmental sensitive polymer are being carried out in PNNL. The modified surface will be analyzed by scientific methods to evaluate the special functional properties. There are a lot of methods which can be employed to analysis the surface properties of materials. One of most useful tool is atomic force microscopy (AFM),! which gives topographical images by scanning a sharp tip over a surface and become an important means of imaging the surface of materials at up to atomic level resolution. Key advantages of the techniques are its ability to image non-conducting materials directly in air or liquid without special sample preparation. AFM will be used to evaluate the change of morphology of polymer coating on the substrate of polymer and silicone wafer. The results will be more valuable to guide the preparation and application of environmental sensitive polymers.

Project Details

Project type
Exploratory Research
Start Date
1999-06-19
End Date
1999-07-01
Status
Closed

Team

Principal Investigator

Liang Liang
Institution
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Team Members

Peter Rieke
Institution
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory

Vilayanur Viswanathan
Institution
Pacific Northwest National Laboratory