Liquid polymer conformation on solid surfaces

The Molecular Spreading of Nonpolar Perfluoropolyether Films on Amorphous Carbon Surfaces

The spreading mechanism of nonpolar perfluoropolyether films on carbon surfaces is examined in the mesoscopic regime, including both submonolayer and multilayer films. For the submonolayer film, adsorption-desorption is a main mechanism for spreading, and the surface diffusion coefficients increase as the film thickness increases. The driving force for the spreading in the submonolayer regime is the gradient of the disjoining pressure, which is described by the two-dimensional virial equation. For the multilayer film regime, the spreading characteristics are determined by the molecular weight and the disjoining pressure gradient, which is assumed to be purely van der Waals in nature. We adopt a partial slip boundary condition to analyze the multilayer film, which qualitatively explains the dependence of the surface diffusion coefficient on film thickness. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.

Thickness Measurements of Thin Perfluoropolyether Polymer Films on Silicon and Amorphous-Hydrogenated Carbon with X-Ray Reflectivity, ESCA and Optical Ellipsometry

Experimental techniques used to measure structural parameters of thin films such as thickness, density, and coverage provide important insights into the physical properties of these films. Structural parameters are also often used to predict the eventual performance of thin films. In this study, we use three different measurement techniques-X-ray reflectivity (XRR), electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA), and optical ellipsometry-to measure the thickness of molecularly thin perfluoropolyether (PFPE) polymer films on silicon substrates and carbon overcoats. PFPE films are commonly used to lubricate surfaces in magnetic recording devices. Here, we use XRR to measure the absolute thickness of the films, which, in turn, is used to test the validity of ESCA and ellipsometry thickness measurements. Excellent agreement is found among the three methods, provided that a 25-Å electron mean-free path (MFP) is used for the PFPE film and the substrate in ESCA (single MFP model), that the bulk PFPE refractive index is used in ellipsometry, and that adventitiously adsorbed hydrocarbons are properly taken into account. Copyright 2000 Academic Press.