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Quasi-Periodic Nanoripples on Perpendicular Polymeric Substrates through a Single Plasma Etching Step

We have studied quasi-periodic nanoripples formation on perpendicularly placed polymeric substrates with respect to the plasma reactor electrode near the bottom edge of the substrates (i.e. adjacent to the electrode). The plasma texturing of these perpendicular polymeric samples is rapid, easy and promising for fabricating in one-step (masklessly and without using intricate sheath control plates) quasi-periodic patterns. The term Plasma-Induced Periodic Surface Structures (PIPSS) for such periodic nanostructures is introduced - in correspondence with the well-established term Laser-Induced Periodic Surface Structures (LIPSS). Such nanoripples have become more and more attractive due to their capability to change the materials’ surface properties and can be utilized in a variety of applications from light harvesting to bioanalysis and microfluidics. This formation is attributed to ion trajectories reaching the substrate bottom edge with high off-normal angles, as predicted by a modeling framework calculating ion trajectories. More particularly a modelling framework comprising of a reactor scale model and a Monte Carlo particle tracing model is employed to predict the formation of anisotropic (quasi-periodic) structures (nanoripples) on the perpendicularly placed polymeric substrates through calculation of the local distributions of the ion incident angles and energies (IAEDF). The ions seem to “scratch” the polymeric surface leading to ripple formation, parallel to the ion direction, while when moving upwards, the ion impinging angle decreases, leading to a more isotropic roughened pattern.  This variation from anisotropic (nanoripples) to isotropic pattern (nanowire-like) roughness was experimentally confirmed through plasma processing experiments on commercial polymeric samples, via SEM images and their metrological analysis.

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