This volume compiles essential contributions to the most innovative fields of Plasma Processes and Polymers. High-quality contributions cover the fields of plasma deposition, plasma treatment of polymers and other organic compounds, plasma processes under partial vacuum and at atmospheric pressure, biomedical, textile, automotive, and optical applications as well as surface treatment of bulk materials, clusters, particles and powders. This unique collection of refereed papers is based on the best contributions presented at the 16th International Symposium on Plasma Chemistry in Taormina, Italy (ISPC-16, June 2003). A high class reference of relevance to a large audience in plasma community as well as in the area of its industrial applications.

Plasma Polymer Films examines the current status of the deposition and characterization of fluorocarbon-, hydrocarbon- and silicon-containing plasma polymer films and nanocomposites, with plasma polymer matrix. It introduces plasma polymerization process diagnostics such as optical emission spectroscopy (OES, AOES), and describes special deposition techniques such as atmospheric pressure glow discharge. Important issues for applications such as degradation and stability are treated in detail, and structural characterization, basic electrical and optical properties and biomedical applications are discussed.

In current materials R&D, high priority is given to surface modification techniques to achieve improved surface properties for specific applications requirements. Plasma treatment and polymerization are important technologies for this purpose. This book provides a basic and thorough presentation of this subject. This is probably the first book

Plasma Deposition, Treatment, and Etching of Polymers takes a broad look at the basic principles, the chemical processes, and the diagnostic procedures in the interaction of plasmas with polymer surfaces. This recent technology has yielded a large class of new materials offering many applications, including their use as coatings for chemical fibers and films. Additional applications include uses for the passivation of metals, the surface hardening of tools, increased biocompatibility of biomedical materials, chemical and physical sensors, and a variety of micro- and optoelectronic devices. - Appeals to a broad range of industries from microelectronics to space technology - Discusses a wide array of new uses for plasma polymers - Provides a tutorial introduction to the field - Surveys various classes of plasma polymers, their chemical and morphological properties, effects of plasma process parameters on the growth and structure of these synthetic materials, and techniques for characterization - Interests scientists, engineers, and students alike

More than 99% of all visible matter in the universe occurs as highly ionized gas plasma with high energy content. Electrical low- and atmospheric-pressure plasmas are characterized by continuous source of moderate quantities of energy or enthalpy transferred predominantly as kinetic energy of electrons. Therefore, such energetically unbalanced plasmas have low gas temperature but produce sufficient energy for inelastic collisions with atoms and molecules in the gas phase, thus producing reactive species and photons, which are able to initiate all types of polymerizations or activate any surface of low reactive polymers. However, the broadly distributed energies in the plasma exceed partially the binding energies in polymers, thus initiating very often unselective reactions and polymer degradation. The intention of this book is to present new plasma processes and new plasma reactions of high selectivity and high yield. This book aims to bridge classical and plasma chemistry, particularly focusing on polymer chemistry in the bulk and on the surface under plasma exposure. The stability of surface functionalization and the qualitative and quantitative measurement of functional groups at polymer surface are featured prominently, and chemical pathways for suppressing the undesirable side effects of plasma exposure are proposed and illustrated with numerous examples. Special attention is paid to the smooth transition from inanimate polymer surfaces to modified bioactive polymer surfaces. A wide range of techniques, plasma types and applications are demonstrated.

This comprehensive text is suitable for researchers and graduate students of a ‘hot’ new topic in medical physics. Written by the world’s leading experts, this book aims to present recent developments in plasma medicine, both technological and scientific, reviewed in a fashion accessible to the highly interdisciplinary audience consisting of doctors, physicists, biologists, chemists and other scientists, university students and professors, engineers and medical practitioners. The book focuses on major topics and covers the physics required to develop novel plasma discharges relevant for medical applications, the medicine to apply the technology not only in-vitro but also in-vivo testing and the biology to understand complicated bio-chemical processes involved in plasma interaction with living tissues.

An indispensable volume detailing the current and potential applications of atmospheric pressure plasma treatment by experts practicing in fields around the world Polymers are used in a wide variety of industries to fabricate legions of products because of their many desirable traits. However, polymers in general (and polyolefins, in particular) are innately not very adhesionable because of the absence of polar or reactive groups on their surfaces and concomitant low surface energy. Surface treatment of polymers, however, is essential to impart reactive chemical groups on their surfaces to enhance their adhesion characteristic. Proper surface treatment can endow polymers with improved adhesion without affecting the bulk properties. A plethora of techniques (ranging from wet to dry, simple to sophisticated, vacuum to non-vacuum) for polymer surface modification have been documented in the literature but the Atmospheric Pressure Plasma (APP) treatment has attracted much attention because it offers many advantages vis-a-vis other techniques, namely uniform treatment, continuous operation, no need for vacuum, simplicity, low cost, no environmental or disposal concern, and applicability to large area samples. Although the emphasis in this book is on the utility of APP treatment for enhancement of polymer adhesion, APP is also applicable and effective to modulate many other surface properties of polymers: superhydrophilicity, superhydrophobicity, anti-fouling, anti-fogging, anti-icing, cell adhesion, biocompatibility, tribological behavior, etc. The key features of Atmospheric Pressure Plasma Treatment of Polymers: Address design and functions of various types of reactors Bring out current and potential applications of APP treatment Represent the cumulative wisdom of many key academic and industry researchers actively engaged in this key and enabling technology

Proceedings of the NATO Advanced Study Institute on Plasma Treatments and Deposition of Polymers, Acquafredda di Maratea, Italy, May 19-June 2, 1996

Plasma Polymerization aims to bridge the conceptual gap between the academic and practical approaches to plasma polymerization and highlights the significance of plasma polymerization in materials science and technology. The major topics covered are gas-phase kinetics, ionization of gases, fundamentals of polymerization, mechanism of polymer formation in plasma, competitive aspects of polymer formation and ablation, mechanism of polymer deposition, operational factors of plasma polymerization, and electrical properties of plasma polymers. This book is comprised of 11 chapters and begins with a brief overview of plasma polymerization and its growing importance for the formation of entirely new kinds of materials. The discussion then shifts to a comparison between plasma-state polymerization and plasma-induced polymerization, between plasma polymerization and graft polymerization, and between plasma polymerization and radiation polymerization. The reader is also introduced to fundamental aspects of gas-phase reactions, paying particular attention to the classical kinetic theory of gas, as well as the mechanisms of formation of polymeric materials in plasma, competitive ablation and polymer formation in plasma, and polymer deposition in plasma polymerization. The operational parameters of plasma polymerization are described and a chapter devoted to the electrical properties of plasma-polymerized thin organic films concludes the book. This book will be of interest to students and researchers of material science.

A guide to modifying and functionalizing the surfaces of polymers Surface Modification of Polymers is an essential guide to the myriad methods that can be employed to modify and functionalize the surfaces of polymers. The functionalization of polymer surfaces is often required for applications in sensors, membranes, medicinal devices, and others. The contributors?noted experts on the topic?describe the polymer surface in detail and discuss the internal and external factors that influence surface properties. This comprehensive guide to the most important methods for the introduction of new functionalities is an authoritative resource for everyone working in the field. This book explores many applications, including the plasma polymerization technique, organic surface functionalization by initiated chemical vapor deposition, photoinduced functionalization on polymer surfaces, functionalization of polymers by hydrolysis, aminolysis, reduction, oxidation, surface modification of nanoparticles, and many more. Inside, readers will find information on various applications in the biomedical field, food science, and membrane science. This important book: -Offers a range of polymer functionalization methods for biomedical applications, water filtration membranes, and food science -Contains discussions of the key surface modification methods, including plasma and chemical techniques, as well as applications for nanotechnology, environmental filtration, food science, and biomedicine -Includes contributions from a team of international renowned experts Written for polymer chemists, materials scientists, plasma physicists, analytical chemists, surface physicists, and surface chemists, Surface Modification of Polymers offers a comprehensive and application-oriented review of the important functionalization methods with a special focus on biomedical applications, membrane science, and food science.