Thin crystalline functional group copolymer poly(vinylidene fluoride–trifluoroethylene) film patterning using synchrotron radiation

Abstract

The photodegradation mechanism due to synchrotron radiation exposure of crystalline poly[vinylidene fluoride–trifluoroetylene, P(VDF–TrFE)] copolymer thin films has been studied with ultraviolet photoemission spectroscopy (UPS) and mass spectroscopy. Upon increasing exposure to x-ray white light (h ν≤1000 eV), UPS measurements reveal that substantial chemical modifications occur in P(VDF–TrFE) 5 monolayer films, including the emergence of new valence band features near the Fermi level, indicating a semimetallic photodegradeted product. The photodetached fragments of the copolymer consist mainly of H2, HF, CHF, CH2. This x-ray exposure study demonstrates that P(VDF–TrFE) films, possessing unique technologically important properties, can be directly patterned by x-ray lithographic processes. ©2000 American Institute of Physics