Location
Harrisonburg, VA
Start Date
16-5-2012 10:30 AM
End Date
16-5-2012 10:50 AM
Description
We have studied the modification of surfaces of both PMMA and nano-composite polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) containing acrylics. These nano-composites can be spun cast from a variety of solvents and the surface chemistry can be modified by exposure to oxygen-containing plasmas. However, we have found that interesting surface structure evolve over the space of several hours after these films are deposited. We have also found that the solvent used for the spin casting of these layers can alter the behaviors of these surfaces. In particular, we found that halogenated solvents can form complexes with the PMMA backbone to increase the adhesion of noble metal layers on the surface of these polymer.
Presenter Bio
Chris Hughes, Professor, Physics & Astronomy, James Madison University
Chris Hughes received a B.S. with honors in Physics from Davidson College and a Ph.D. in Physics from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. His graduate work included nuclear methods to study point defects in narrow band-gap semiconductors and ion beam analysis. After completion of his degree, he worked for more than two years as a postdoctoral researcher in the Department of Physics at North Carolina State University, during which time he worked on the processing and optical characterization of wide band-gap II-VI and III-V nitride semiconductors for light emitters such as LEDs and laser diodes. He came to JMU as an Assistant Professor of Physics in 1997 and has since been tenured and promoted to full professor. His work at JMU has included studies of self-assembly of organic molecules on III-V semiconductor surfaces, novel microfabrication techniques for microfluidic devices, and surface modification of polymers and nanocomposite polymers.
Dr. Hughes currently serves as Director of the JMU Center for Materials Science and is a councilor and recent chair of the physics and astronomy division of the Council on Undergraduate Research (CUR). He has been recognized by the JMU College of Science and Mathematics with its Outstanding Teacher Award in 2005 and Distinguished Service Award in 2012. He has served as mentor to dozens of undergraduate physics and chemistry majors and directed the JMU Materials Science Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program since its initiation in 2001.
Brian Augustine, Professor, Chemistry & Biochemistry, James Madison University
Professor Brian Augustine joined the faculty in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at James Madison University in 1997 after receiving his Ph.D. in Chemistry at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1995 and completing postdoctoral work at the Microelectronics Center of North Carolina in Research Triangle Park. Since arriving at JMU, Augustine has been active in both research and curriculum development through the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry and the Center for Materials Science in introducing materials science and nanoscience into the undergraduate curriculum across the disciplines of chemistry and physics. He has been awarded education grants from the National Science Foundation in nanoscience education, and developed an American Chemical Society accredited B.S. degree in materials chemistry. He was awarded a Fulbright Lecture/Research scholarship to work at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa in 2009 to adapt the course “The Science of the Small: An Introduction to the Nano World” at the School of Chemistry at UKZN. Professor Augustine has a highly interdisciplinary undergraduate research program which has involved more than 65 students with majors including chemistry, physics, biology, Integrated Science and Technology, engineering and mathematics. There are several research areas in the group with a common theme of using surface engineering and characterization techniques to control the surface chemistry and properties of microfabricated devices.
Included in
Surface Modification & Characterization of Nano-Composite Polymers
Harrisonburg, VA
We have studied the modification of surfaces of both PMMA and nano-composite polyhedral oligomeric silsesquioxane (POSS) containing acrylics. These nano-composites can be spun cast from a variety of solvents and the surface chemistry can be modified by exposure to oxygen-containing plasmas. However, we have found that interesting surface structure evolve over the space of several hours after these films are deposited. We have also found that the solvent used for the spin casting of these layers can alter the behaviors of these surfaces. In particular, we found that halogenated solvents can form complexes with the PMMA backbone to increase the adhesion of noble metal layers on the surface of these polymer.
