Nanomechanical properties of mechanical double-layers: a novel semiempirical analysis

Long-Time Behavior of Surface Properties of Microstructures Fabricated by Multiphoton Lithography

The multiphoton lithography (MPL) technique represents the future of 3D microprinting, enabling the production of complex microscale objects with high precision. Although the MPL fabrication parameters are widely evaluated and discussed, not much attention has been given to the microscopic properties of 3D objects with respect to their surface properties and time-dependent stability. These properties are of crucial importance when it comes to the safe and durable use of these structures in biomedical applications. In this work, we investigate the surface properties of the MPL-produced SZ2080 polymeric microstructures with regard to the physical aging processes during the post-production stage. The influence of aging on the polymeric microstructures was investigated by means of Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS). As a result, a time-dependent change in Young's Modulus, plastic deformation, and adhesion and their correlation to the development in chemical composition of the surface of MPL-microstructures are evaluated. The results presented here are valuable for the application of MPL-fabricated 3D objects in general, but especially in medical technology as they give detailed information of the physical and chemical time-dependent dynamic behavior of MPL-printed surfaces and thus their suitability and performance in biological systems.

Local mechanical properties of electrospun fibers correlate to their internal nanostructure

The properties of polymeric nanofibers can be tailored and enhanced by properly managing the structure of the polymer molecules at the nanoscale. Although electrospun polymer fibers are increasingly exploited in many technological applications, their internal nanostructure, determining their improved physical properties, is still poorly investigated and understood. Here, we unravel the internal structure of electrospun functional nanofibers made by prototype conjugated polymers. The unique features of near-field optical measurements are exploited to investigate the nanoscale spatial variation of the polymer density, evidencing the presence of a dense internal core embedded in a less dense polymeric shell. Interestingly, nanoscale mapping the fiber Young's modulus demonstrates that the dense core is stiffer than the polymeric, less dense shell. These findings are rationalized by developing a theoretical model and simulations of the polymer molecular structural evolution during the electrospinning process. This model predicts that the stretching of the polymer network induces a contraction of the network toward the jet center with a local increase of the polymer density, as observed in the solid structure. The found complex internal structure opens an interesting perspective for improving and tailoring the molecular morphology and multifunctional electronic and optical properties of polymer fibers.

Polymer nanogels grafted from nanopatterned surfaces studied by AFM force spectroscopy

Nanopatterned cross-linked polymers are important for applications with controlled mechanical properties. Grafted linear and cross-linked polydimethylacrylamide gels on micro- and nanopatterns were created using iniferter-driven quasi-living radical polymerization combined with conventional photolithography and nanosphere lithography. Micropatterned linear polymers reproduce the expected scaling behavior at moderate grafting density. The addition of cross-linker to the polymerization solution leads to an increased tendency of early termination as determined by AFM force spectroscopy. Similarly, nanopatterned linear polymers show reduced thickness in agreement with the expected scaling relationship for nanoisland grafts that have reduced lateral confinement. The addition of cross-linker reintroduces some of the lateral confinement for the length of polymers reported here. The mechanical properties of both the micro- and nanopatterned linear as well as cross-linked polymers were analyzed using an algorithm to objectively determine the contact point in AFM force spectroscopy and two independent Hertz-based analysis approaches. The obtained Young's moduli are close to those expected for homogeneous thick polymer films and are independent of pattern size. Our results demonstrate that polymeric nanopillars with controlled elastic modulus can be fabricated using irreversible cross-linkers. They also highlight some of the factors that must be considered for successful fabrication of grafted nanopillars of defined mechanical and structural properties.

Mechanical properties of thin polymer films on stiff substrates

Force-displacement curves have been acquired with a commercial atomic force microscope on thin films of poly(n-butyl methacrylate) on glass substrates in order to examine the so-called "mechanical double layer" topic, i.e. the influence of the substrate on the mechanical properties of the film in dependence of the film thickness. The hyperbolic fit, a novel semi-empirical equation introduced in previous articles, has been further corroborated. The interpretation of this equation has been deepened, yielding a quantitative and demonstrative characterization of the mechanical properties of double layers. Provided that the Young's moduli of bulk polymer and substrate are measured from the deformation curves, this mathematical model permits to fit the deformation-force curves on the double layers and to determine the thickness of the polymer films in wide range (0-200  nm).

Influence of film-substrate adhesion on the mechanical properties of thin polymer films

The mechanical properties of mechanical double layers (thin amorphous films of poly(n-butyl methacrylate) on considerably stiffer silicon substrates) were investigated by force-displacement curves acquired with an atomic force microscope. The substrate surface was modified to provide a hydrophilic and a hydrophobic moiety. Such a modification affects the adhesion between film and substrate, since the polymer film adheres strongly on the hydrophilic side and weakly on the hydrophobic one. In this way, we were able to investigate the influence of the adhesion between the polymer film and substrate on the mechanical properties of the mechanical double layer. We were able to show that force-displacement curves on the two moieties of the sample have a different shape, and we propose an interpretation of the mechanisms determining the force-deformation curves on films with small adhesion to the substrate. This experiment can also provide an approach to the question of how the mechanical properties of a bulk material change with the volume to surface ratio, since a film with vanishing adhesion to the substrate is the only experimental accessible setup approximating a free-standing thin film.

Nanoindentation measurement of Young's modulus for compliant layers on stiffer substrates including the effect of Poisson's ratios

Finite element analysis (FEA) is used to investigate the effect of the Poisson's ratios of both the overlayer and the substrate on the nanoindentation of an elastic two-phase system where the elastic overlayer is more compliant than the underlying elastic substrate. A rigid spherical indenter is used as a probe. It is found that nanoindentation results may be expressed analytically using a simple extension of the previously described equation (Clifford and Seah 2006 Nanotechnology 17 5283). This simple function describes the reduced modulus value measured using Oliver and Pharr's method (1992 J. Mater. Res. 7 1564) for any modulus values or Poisson's ratio values of the overlayer and substrate, overlayer thickness or indenter tip radius. This equation and the FEA behind it are tested using experimental published data for the nanoindentation of a silicon dioxide layer on silicon.

Effect of capillary pressure and surface tension on the deformation of elastic surfaces by sessile liquid microdrops: an experimental investigation

Sessile liquid drops are predicted to deform an elastic surface onto which they are placed because of the combined action of the liquid surface tension at the periphery of the drop and the capillary pressure inside the drop. Here, we show for the first time the in situ experimental confirmation of the effect of capillary pressure on this deformation. We demonstrate micrometer-scale deformations made possible by using a low Young's modulus material as an elastic surface. The experimental profiles of the deformed surfaces fit well the theoretical predictions for surfaces with a Young's modulus between 25 and 340 kPa.