Ion Beam Mixing of Metal/Fluoropolymer Interfaces

The adhesion of metals to polymers depends on the structure at the interface. In this work, we study the mixing\u27 effect of 50 keV nitrogen implanted thin metal layers on Teflon PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene). RBS analysis shows that thin layers copper and chromium approximately 300-400 Å thick become distributed though the implant layer of the Teflon. When the implant fluence increases the metal is distributed over a small range deep into the implant layer. In situ RGA analysis during the implantation process shows the liberation of an abundance of fluorine in many different forms. This is supported by results from a NRA that shows the non-uniform density profile of fluorine throughout the implant layers. During the implantation process, the fluorine is released through the incident ion track leaving a carbon and metal rich region near the surface of the implant layer. The fluorine density increases with depth through the implant layer