Possibilities
With APG technology functional foils can be made. With these foils a number of applications in e.g. flexible electronics and membrane technology is possible. Below three categories of application are further explained.
Surface treatment
Even without additional material the plasma modifies the surface of the substrate (a foil). This can be used for planarization, the removal of impurities and contaminants, for sterilization and chemical modification to improve wettability (hydrophilic layer) and absorption of dyes.
Deposition
By inserting a gas mixture thin films can be deposited on the substrate. This results in an ultrathin layer (order of nm). The function of that layer is current topic of investigations.
Patterning
This function can be used for e.g. screening at high throughput and in the making of displays and IC’s. Moreover it has been used for making a chemical pattern that guides cell attachment and movement.