title: Electron beam irradiation of poly(vinyl methyl ether) films: 1. Synthesis and film topography.
abstract: Temperature-sensitive hydrogel layers on silicon (Si) substrates were synthesized by electron beam irradiation of spin-coated poly(vinyl methyl ether) (PVME) films. The influences of the used solvent, the polymer concentration, and the spinning velocity on the homogeneity and the thickness of the PVME film were investigated. In the range of concentration c(p) = 1-15 wt% PVME in ethanol solution, homogeneous films with a thickness between d = 50 nm and 1.7 mum were obtained. The films were cross-linked by electron beam irradiation under inert atmosphere and analyzed by sol-gel-analysis. The results were compared with bulkgels formed by electron beam irradiation of PVME in the dry state. The film topography was analyzed by high-resolution field emission scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. An islandlike structure in the dry, swollen, and shrunken state of the hydrogel films was observed.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Physikalische Chemie und Elektrochemie, Technische Universität Dresden, Mommsenstrasse 13, D-01062 Dresden, Germany.
authors.forename: Jan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hegewald
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Schmidt
authors.forename: Uwe
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Gohs
authors.forename: Margarita
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Günther
authors.forename: Rudolf
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Reichelt
authors.forename: Burkhard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Stiller
authors.forename: Karl-Friedrich
authors.initials: KF
authors.lastname: Arndt