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CC BY 4.0 · Organic Materials 2023; 5(02): 118-138
DOI: 10.1055/a-2076-8570
Organic Thin Films: From Vapor Deposition to Functional Applications
Short Review

Vapor-Deposited Polymer Films and Structure: Methods and Applications

Fang-Yu Chou    #
a   Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, 10617 No. 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei City, Taiwan
,
Theresia Cecylia Ramli    #
a   Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, 10617 No. 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei City, Taiwan
,
Chin-Yun Lee 
a   Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, 10617 No. 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei City, Taiwan
,
Shu-Man Hu 
a   Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, 10617 No. 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei City, Taiwan
,
Jane Christy 
a   Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, 10617 No. 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei City, Taiwan
,
Hsien-Yeh Chen 
a   Department of Chemical Engineering, National Taiwan University, 10617 No. 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei City, Taiwan
b   Molecular Imaging Center, National Taiwan University, 10617 No. 1, Section 4, Roosevelt Road, Taipei City, Taiwan
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Abstract

Vapor deposition of polymers is known to result in densified thin films, and recent developments have advanced these polymers with interesting fabrication techniques to a variety of controlled structures other than thin films. With the advantages of chemical modification and functionalization of these polymers, advancements have combined both the physical and chemical properties of these vapor-deposited polymers to obtain controlled anisotropic polymers, including layer-by-layer, gradient, hierarchical, porosity, and the combination of the above, meaning that the produced polymers are functional and are addressed in devised physical configurations and chemical compositions. The main purpose of using polymer coatings as a tool for surface modification is to provide additional properties that decouple the natural properties of the underlying materials (including metals, polymers, oxides/ceramics, glass, silicon, etc.), and recent advancements have rendered novel insights into combined physical and chemical properties to fulfill the increasing needs of sophisticated requirements of materials for users. The review herein intends to deliver messages of recent progress of the advancements of vapor-deposited polymers, with discussions of the variations of the physical structures and chemical functionalities, and how these two aspects are integrated with novel fabrication techniques. The advanced vapor polymers now have the capability of controlled anisotropy in the physical structure and chemical composition and are expected to pave the way for interface engineering toward prospective material designs.

Table of content:

1. Introduction

2. Fabrication and Materials

3. Controls of Anisotropy

4. Applications

5. Conclusions and Outlook

Key words

vapor deposition - polymer coating - surface modification - surface structures - material interfaces

# These authors contributed equally to this work.




Publication History

Received: 02 December 2022

Accepted after revision: 12 April 2023

Accepted Manuscript online:
19 April 2023

Article published online:
16 May 2023

© 2023. The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, permitting unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction so long as the original work is properly cited. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

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