Polymeric Surface Alteration via Scanning Probe Microscopy

Abstract — Polymeric materials which are used in the manufacture of biosensors must satisfy requirements for performance, specificity and biocompatibility, particularly with in vivo medical applications. This study focuses on the physical alteration/manipulation of three polymer surfaces (Polyimide, PDMS and P(tBuMA)), via the Scanning Probe Microscope (SPM). A clean incompressible silicon surface was used for calibration purposes. Manipulation (particularly on the softer polymer surfaces, PDMS and P(tBuMA)) was achieved using stiff levers (i.e.,> 4 nNnm-1). The resultant alteration was then analyzed using a soft lever (<< 1 nNnm-1) to avoid further manipulation and alteration. The polymeric materials were selected because of their varying degree of ‘stiffness ’ (i.e., Young’s modulus), commercial availability, potential application as low cost biosensor devices and ease of preparation