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Thin films of bismuth and iron oxides were obtained by atomic layer deposition (ALD) on the surface of a flexible substrate poly(4,4'-oxydiphenylene-pyromellitimide) (Kapton) at a temperature of 250°C. The layer thickness was 50 nm. The samples were examined by secondary-ion mass spectrometry, and uniform distribution of elements in the film layer was observed. Surface morphology, electrical polarization, and mechanical properties were investigated by atomic force microscope, piezoelectric force microscopy, and force modulation microscopy. The values of current in the near-surface layer varied in the range of ±80 pA when a potential of 5 V was applied. Chemical analysis was performed by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, where the formation of Bi2 O3 and Fe2 O3 phases, as well as intermediate phases in the Bi-Fe-O system, was observed. Magnetic measurements were carried out by a vibrating sample magnetometer that showed a ferromagnetic response. The low-temperature method of functionalization of the Kapton surface with bismuth and iron oxides will make it possible to adapt the Bi-Fe-O system to flexible electronics.

This study is the first to report the clinical lifetime of Varian Kapton sealed ion chambers as a retrospective review. The data have been analyzed using ion chamber gain values, daily quality assurance results, monthly quality assurance results, and delivered treatment field data were analyzed to comprehensively review trends. The data show the average lifetimes of the ion chambers from our institution, so other physicists can prepare for replacement. Additionally, we share our experience in performing quality assurance tests to calibrate and validate the radiation beam after ion chamber replacement.

Dielectric barrier discharge (DBD) plasma actuators are simple electrohydrodynamic devices, which are able to provide effective aerodynamic control. One of the main components of these devices is the thin dielectric layer, which allows to separate and prevent the arc between the high voltage electrodes. Different materials can be used as dielectric layer to reduce the power consumption or boost the flow controlling effect of the actuators. In this context, this report presents a comparative study of two commercial polyimides, Kapton and Cirlex, used as dielectric layer of surface DBD plasma actuators. The electrical, dielectric, mechanical, electromechanical and thermal properties were obtained to evaluate overall performance. It was verified that Cirlex (8.3 W) consumes less power than Kapton (21.3 W) to generate higher induced flow velocity of ≈3.4 m/s for an input voltage of 11 kVpp and 24 kHz. During one AC cycle at 11 kVpp the charge transferred for Cirlex (70 nC) is lower than for Kapton (100 nC), as well as the dielectric breakdown voltage to ignite the plasma discharge, 1.5 and 2.2 kVpp, respectively. The Cirlex DBD presents a higher voltage operation limit (at least 14 kVpp) and a more regular plasma discharge, which results in a more homogenous thermal profile and temperature distribution during its operation. The Cirlex actuator delivered higher mechanical power (6.2 mW) and achieved higher electromechanical efficiency (0.004%). The polyimide Cirlex proved to be a suitable alternative for Kapton to fabricate DBD plasma actuators for flow control with improved performance., The authors thank the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT), Fundo Social Europeu (FSE) and Programa Operacional Regional Centro 2020 and Norte 2020 for the Strategic Funding UID/00151/2020 and UID/FIS/04650/2020, the grant SFRH/BPD/117838/2016 (J.N.P.) and the project CEECIND/03347/2017 (M.A.). F.F.R. wish to thank the financial support of the project INDTECH 4.0 funded by Portugal 2020, Programa Operacional Competitividade e Internacionalização (POCI) and Fundo Europeu de Desenvolvimento Regional (FEDER). The authors acknowledge funding from the Basque Government Industry Departments under the ELKARTEK programs.

2D metal oxide-based nanomaterials have emerged as an exciting area of research owing to their rich electrochemical properties and diverse applications, including biosensors. In this work, we have synthesized ultra-thin Co3 O4 , NiO, and NiCo2 O4 nanostructures supported on a carbon cloth and printed graphite/Kapton substrates following thermal reduction of self-assembled metal alkanethiolates. These nanostructures act as a sensing platform for simultaneous detection of dopamine (DA) and uric acid (UA), important biological molecules in physiological and pathological tests. The ultrathin 2D nanoplates of NiCo2 O4 spinel formed in this study exhibit high electrochemical activity than pristine NiO and Co3 O4 . The electrochemical characterization studies indicate that NiCo2 O4 possesses a high potential for DA and UA with a peak separation of ∼140 mV, high sensitivity, and excellent selectivity. The low-cost and disposable, single-shot probe biosensors fabricated in this work possess a wide working range of 0.001-1000 μM with detection limits of 0.33 and 0.49 nM for DA and UA, respectively, with a practically achievable limit of quantification of ∼1 nM. Multiple sensing electrodes are printed on graphite/Kapton all at once following this method with improved reproducibility for DA and UA sensing further extending the scope of work towards mass fabrication and practical usage.

The organic insulator-metal interface is the most important junction in flexible electronics. The strong band offset of organic insulators over the Fermi level of electrodes should theoretically impart a sufficient impediment for charge injection known as the Schottky barrier. However, defect formation through Anderson localization due to topological disorder in polymers leads to reduced barriers and hence cumbersome devices. A facile nanocoating comprising hundreds of highly oriented organic/inorganic alternating nanolayers is self-coassembled on the surface of polymer films to revive the Schottky barrier. Carrier injection over the enhanced barrier is further shunted by anisotropic 2D conduction. This new interface engineering strategy allows a significant elevation of the operating field for organic insulators by 45% and a 7× improvement in discharge efficiency for Kapton at 150 °C. This superior 2D nanocoating thus provides a defect-tolerant approach for effective reviving of the Schottky barrier, one century after its discovery, broadly applicable for flexible electronics.

The material characterization of the gaseous electron multiplier (GEM) detectors is presented in this article; mechanical tests were performed to examine the mechanical performance of polyimide (Kapton) and GEM foil. Bearing in mind the mechanical stresses imposed during the assembly and subsequently during operation at Compact Muon Solenoid (CMS). The detectors will run for many years in the harsh radiation and environmental conditions at the CMS. In view of this a series of the tensile tests were performed by using different samples which were prepared accordingly, i.e. a set of the samples was exposed to neutron and another exposed to gamma radiation, and then these were made dry and wet to assess the effects of radiation and humidity on their tensile properties. In this paper the experimental setup, testing procedures, sampling and detailed results are presented. In general, due to the radiation and environment variation conditions the degradation of the GEM material is not significant with respect to its toughness, but the Young's modulus was effected.

In this study, polystyrene- and poly(methyl methacrylate)-grafted polyimide films were prepared successfully using click chemistry and the ATRP technique. Firstly, kapton films were prepared from stepwise thermal imidization of polyamic acid. Surface modification of kapton films was then achieved by chloromethylation followed by the azide decoration process. For surface grafting of kapton films, polystyrene and poly(methyl methacrylate) as alkyne functional polymers were prepared with alkyne and bromine double functionality using propargyl-2-bromopropionate as an initiator. A coupling reaction with azide-decorated PI surface and alkyne functional polymers was achieved via the Huisgen-1,3-dipolar cycloaddition reaction. FTIR spectroscopy, contact angle measurement, thermogravimetry (TG) and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) and GPC techniques were used to characterize the grafted polyimides. According to the TG analysis, kapton film was modified at the rate of 8% and 10% with PS and PMMA, respectively.

Due to a smooth hydrophobic surface of Kapton film, it is very difficult to coat an inorganic oxide coating on its surface. In this study, the surface of Kapton was treated by NH3·H2O and silicon coupling agent to improve the polymer surface wettability. Changes in surface hydrophilicity were studied by contact angle measurement. The samples were irradiated by atomic oxygen (AO) in a ground-based simulation system. TiO2/SiO2 multi-layer coatings were prepared on the surface of Kapton by sol–gel method to resist AO erosion. The optical transmittance and surface morphology of samples were investigated by UV–vis spectroscopy and scanning electronic microscope. The results indicated that the TiO2/SiO2 sol could easily form a uniform thin coating on the surface of pretreated Kapton. After AO exposure, the coatings became more compact, without peeling off. The AO erosion yield value of coated Kapton was sharply down, and the samples had good optical transparency. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

This article investigates the synthesis of vertically aligned carbon nanotube sheets through the pyrolysis of polybenzimidazole (PBI)-Kapton inside the pores of anodized aluminium oxide (AAO). The nanocomposites CNT/Alumina obtained were characterized by several techniques. It was found that the resulted carbon structures presented higher crystallinity compared with graphite. All of the CNT sheets had high antibacterial activity that was proportional to degree of CNT crystallinity. Moreover, the desalination of salty water using carbon nanotube (CNT) sheets was performed. The results demonstrated that the vertically aligned CNT sheets could be used as an effective adsorbent for salty water desalination due to their very high adsorption capacity without CNT leakage into water. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved

The interfacing of soft and hard electronics is a key challenge for flexible hybrid electronics. Currently, a multisubstrate approach is employed, where soft and hard devices are fabricated or assembled on separate substrates, and bonded or interfaced using connectors; this hinders the flexibility of the device and is prone to interconnect issues. Here, a single substrate interfacing approach is reported, where soft devices, i.e., sensors, are directly printed on Kapton polyimide substrates that are widely used for fabricating flexible printed circuit boards (FPCBs). Utilizing a process flow compatible with the FPCB assembly process, a wearable sensor patch is fabricated composed of inkjet-printed gold electrocardiography (ECG) electrodes and a stencil-printed nickel oxide thermistor. The ECG electrodes provide 1 mVp–p ECG signal at 4.7 cm electrode spacing and the thermistor is highly sensitive at normal body temperatures, and demonstrates temperature coefficient, α ≈ –5.84% K–1 and material constant, β ≈ 4330 K. This sensor platform can be extended to a more sophisticated multisensor platform where sensors fabricated using solution processable functional inks can be interfaced to hard electronics for health and performance monitoring, as well as internet of things applications.

Sunshield membranes made of germanium coated black polyimide (GBP) or Kapton are often used on the reflector/transmitter antenna of satellites for thermal control applications. However, the germanium top layer is prone to degrade during ground storage and implementation. Hence vacuum/inert gas sealed packaging is required for storing the membranes, followed by a staggered fabrication schedule as the shelf-life of the GBP is identified as only ~ 6 months. In the present study, microstructural, thermo-optical and electrical properties along with XPS studies for evaluating oxidation states of the as-received and degraded GBP films have been investigated thoroughly. The radio frequency (RF) loss behaviour of both the films has also been studied for S band (2.5 GHz- 3.5 GHz), Ku band (10.5 GHz- 14.5 GHz) and Ka Band (30 GHz- 35 GHz).

A novel diamine monomer 1, 4,4'-(9H-fluorene-9,9-diyl)-bis(2-tert-butylaniline), was synthesized from 9-fluorenone and 2-tert-butylaniline by the condensation reaction. Then it was polymerized with several commercial aromatic dianhydrides, respectively, to produce polyimides (PIs) by the one-pot method. The number-averaged molecular weights of the resulting PIs are in the range of (4.54–8.82) × 104 with polydispersity indices from 2.51 to 4.33 by gel permeation chromatography measurement. They are soluble in many organic solvents and can form transparent and tough films by solution-casting. The cut-off wavelengths of UV–vis absorption for the PI films are below 360 nm, which are much lower than that of Kapton film. The light transparency of them is above 90% in the visible light range from 400 to 760 nm. They also display relatively low dielectric constants (from 2.79 to 3.00), low water absorption rates ( 50 MPa). Their excellent solubility and transparency can be attributed to the incorporation of tert-butyl groups and fluorene units into the rigid backbones of PIs. Simultaneously, they still maintain the high thermal stability (the 5% weight loss temperature in the range from 526 to 539 °C in nitrogen) and the high glass transition temperatures (Tg > 340 °C). © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2016, 54, 976–984

A flexible triboelectric nanogenerator (FTENG) based on wavy-structured Kapton film and a serpentine electrode on stretchable substrates is presented. The as-fabricated FTENG is capable of harvesting ambient mechanical energy via both compressive and stretching modes. Moreover, the FTENG can be a bendable power source to work on curved surfaces; it can also be adaptively attached onto human skin for monitoring gentle body motions.

Purpose: Flexible microcoils integrated with ablation catheters can improve the temperature accuracy during local MR-thermometry in Nd:YAG laser interstitial thermal therapies. Here, the authors are concerned with obtaining a preliminary confirmation of the clinical utility of the modified catheter. They investigate whether the thin-film substrate and copper tracks of the printed coil inductor affect the symmetry of the thermal profile, and hence of the lesion produced. Methods: Transmission spectroscopy in the near infrared was performed to test for the attenuation at 1064 nm through the 25 μm thick Kapton substrate of the microcoil. The radial transmission profile of an infrared high-power, light emitting diode with >80% normalized power at 1064 nm was measured through a cross section of the modified applicator to assess the impact of the copper inductor on the optical profile. The measurements were performed in air, as well as with the applicator surrounded by two types of scattering media; crystals of NaCl and a layer of liver-mimicking gel phantom. A numerical model based on Huygens–Fresnel principle and finite element simulations, using a commercially available package (COMSOL Multiphysics), were employed to compare with the optical measurements. The impact of the modified optical profile on the thermal symmetry was assessed by examining the high resolution microcoil derived thermal maps from a Nd:YAG laser ablation performed on a liver-mimicking gel phantom. Results: Less than 30% attenuation through the Kapton film was verified. Shadowing behind the copper tracks was observed in air and the measured radial irradiation correlated well with the diffraction pattern calculated numerically using the Huygens–Fresnel principle. Both optical experiments and simulations, demonstrate that shadowing is mitigated by the scattering properties of a turbid medium. The microcoil derived thermal maps at the end of a Nd:YAG laser ablation performed on a gel phantom in a 3 T scanner confirm that the modified irradiation pattern does not disrupt the thermal symmetry, even though, unlike tissue, the gel is minimally scattering. Conclusions: The results from this initial assessment indicate that microcoils can be safely integrated with ablation catheters and ensure that the complete necrosis of the liver tumor can still be achieved.

This work investigates the electrothermal lifetime of a commonly used polyimide wire insulation material, Kapton®, through the use of thermogravimetry (TG) and breakdown voltage testing. From TG, an isoconversional model-free kinetic evaluation was used to obtain a relationship between the activation energies of degradation for Kapton as a function of weight loss. By relating the electrical life theory and the TG theory through the model defined by Toop (IEEE Trans. Dielectr. Electr. Insul. 1971, 6, 2), the electrothermal lifetime of Kapton has been calculated for conditions of 12 and 14.7 kV over a temperature range of 250–400°C. The resulting model can be used to make lifetime predictions for wire insulation degradation in aging aircraft for improved safety and risk assessment. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 1639–1644, 2013

This study presents the mechanical characterization of the dry film photoresist PerMX and its adhesion properties when laminated onto Kapton (R) E (PI) and Melinex (R) ST506 (PET). Additionally, the processing temperature, the adhesion strength, and the neutral plane position are investigated and optimized. A relatively low-temperature (85 degrees C) process is developed to protect the integrity of the polymers with low glass transition temperature and reduce the thermal mismatch stress. Reduction in processing temperature led to a decrement in the adhesion strength. To counteract this unwanted effect, surface treatments (oxygen plasma) are performed on the polymer surface before lamination. Using the latter techniques, adhesion of PerMX to PET (hard bake: 1 h at 85 degrees C) is increased from 0.07 to 0.26 N mm1 (variation of 270%). Finally, the mechanical robustness is investigated and increased by tuning the position of the neutral plane, after 50,000 bending cycles and a radius of curvature of 2.5 mm. (c) 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys, 2013

Polyimide film has the weakness of high processing temperature and low corona resistance, which restrain its further development. Kapton 100 HN polyimide films with a thickness of 50 μm were aged by needle-plane electrode under 4 kV bipolar pulse voltages for 4 h at different frequencies (300—900 Hz). The surface morphologies of the pristine and aged polyimide films were analyzed using an atomic force microscope, and the changes in chemical bonds during corona aging were analyzed by Raman spectra. Different surface morphologies are observed using AFM, and the parameters all have sharp increases, which reveal that the surface morphology is obviously influenced by the corona aging under the bipolar pulse voltage. Raman results show that there are peak shifts and changes of the relative band intensities, which demonstrate that the chemical bonds in the polymer chains are reoriented by the electric field. Moreover, the corona aging of the polyimide film became severe at high frequency. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2013. © 2012 Society of Plastics Engineers

The development of desirable chemical structures and properties in nanocomposite membranes involve steps that need to be carefully designed and controlled. This study investigates the effect of adding multiwalled nanotubes (MWNT) on a Kapton–polysulfone composite membrane on the separation of various gas pairs. Data from Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy confirm that some studies on the Kapton–polysulfone blends are miscible on the molecular level. In fact, the results indicate that the chemical structure of the blend components, the Kapton–polysulfone blend compositions, and the carbon nanotubes play important roles in the transport properties of the resulting membranes. The results of gas permeability tests for the synthesized membranes specify that using a higher percentage of polysulfone (PSF) in blends resulted in membranes with higher ideal selectivity and permeability. Although the addition of nanotubes can increase the permeability of gases, it decreases gas pair selectivity. Furthermore, these outcomes suggest that Kapton–PSF membranes with higher PSF are special candidates for CO2/CH4 separation compared to CO2/N2 and O2/N2 separation. High CH4, CO2, N2, and O2 permeabilities of 0.35, 6.2, 0.34, and 1.15 bar, respectively, are obtained for the developed Kapton–PSF membranes (25/75%) with the highest percentage of carbon nanotubes (8%), whose values are the highest among all the resultant membranes. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2016, 133, 43839.

We demonstrate that resistance random access memory (RRAM) can be fabricated based on CdS-nanocrystal thin films. A simple drop-drying of the CdS-nanocrystal solution leads to the formation of uniform thin films with controlled thickness. RRAMs with a Ag/Al(2) O(3) /CdS/Pt structure show bipolar switching behavior, with average values of the set voltage (V(Set) ) and reset voltage (V(Reset) ) of 0.15 V and -0.19 V, respectively. The RRAM characteristics are critically influenced by the thickness of the Al(2) O(3) barrier layer, which prevents significant migration of Ag into the CdS layer as revealed by Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). Interestingly, RRAM without an Al(2) O(3) layer (i.e., Ag/CdS/Pt structure) also shows bipolar switching behavior, but the polarity is opposite to that of RRAM with the Al(2) O(3) layer (i.e., Ag/Al(2) O(3) /CdS/Pt structure). The operation of both kinds of devices can be explained by the conventional conductive bridging mechanism. Additionally, we fabricated RRAM devices on Kapton film for potential applications in flexible electronics, and the performance of this RRAM device was comparable to that of RRAMs fabricated on hard silicon substrates. Our results show a new possibility of using chalcogenide nanocrystals for RRAM applications.

The surface morphology, chemical, optical, and structural response of 1.25 MeV gamma rays irradiation at various doses ranging from 16 to 300 kGy on Kapton polymer samples were studied by using scanning electron microscope (SEM), Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR), ultraviolet/visible absorption (UV/VIS) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The morphology study shows the blisters formation on the Kapton polymer surface due to 1.25 MeV gamma rays irradiation at ambient temperature. This observation provides a basis for the quantitative evaluation of FTIR results obtained for thermally stable polymer on the chemical bond deterioration with increasing gamma irradiation. The blistering mechanism is correlated with the internal gases (CO, H2) released due to gamma radiation induced damages. The recorded UV–VIS spectrum shows a maximum absorption around the wavelength 540 nm. However, the nature of the spectra does not change due to gamma irradiation but a shift in absorption edge towards the higher wavelength side has been observed with increasing dose. The optical data shows an increase in the calculated band gap at the highest dose. The diffraction pattern of virgin sample shows that polymer is semicrystalline, but due to irradiation, a decrease in the peak intensity and FWHM and an increase in the crystallite size at the highest dose level of 300 kGy have been observed. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci, 2011

Hybrid organic-inorganic perovskites have shown exceptional semiconducting properties and microstructural versatility for inexpensive, solution-processable photovoltaic and optoelectronic devices. In this work, an all-solution-based technique in ambient environment for highly sensitive and high-speed flexible photodetectors using high crystal quality perovskite nanowires grown on Kapton substrate is presented. At 10 V, the optimized photodetector exhibits a responsivity as high as 0.62 A W-1 , a maximum specific detectivity of 7.3 × 1012 cm Hz1/2 W-1 , and a rise time of 227.2 µs. It also shows remarkable photocurrent stability even beyond 5000 bending cycles. Moreover, a deposition of poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) as a protective layer on the perovskite yields significantly better stability under ambient air operation: the PMMA-protected devices are stable for over 30 days. This work demonstrates a cost-effective fabrication technique for high-performance flexible photodetectors and opens opportunities for research advancements in broadband and large-scale flexible perovskite-based optoelectronic devices.

No abstract available.

Kapton ® polyimide was carbonized at 873, 1073 and 1273 K with a heating rate of 1, 3 and 5 K min -1 and applied to the dehydration of methanol, ethanol and isopropanol by pervaporation. Lowering the heating rate or increasing the carbonization temperature resulted in higher selectivity and a decrease in permeability. X-ray diffraction data revealed that when carbonized at high temperature or with a low heating rate, the membrane had lower interplanar spacing, which corresponded to a reduction in pore size. It was also found that the carbonization temperature had a greater influence on the membrane structure than the heating rate. A comparison between permeability observed from single-component and bi-component feeds indicated that the separation mechanism involved more than molecular sieving alone.

Plasma ion implantation and deposition of polymeric materials has gained substantial interest in recent years. This paper will present numerical results on initial potential on top surface and some examples on ion implantation of thin polymer foils. The results demonstrate that the thickness and permittivity of treated samples have a critical influence on initial potential drop across the insulating objects. The smaller thickness and larger permittivity are beneficial for ion implantation. Duplex films of Al 2 O 3 /SiO 2 have been fabricated using arc plasma ion implantation and deposition. The films may substantially increase atomic-oxygen resistance of Kapton foils, which have been frequently utilized in satellites in low-earth-orbit (LEO) environment. The mass loss of treated samples may decrease by one quarter of magnitude compared to that of control sample. The PET foils have also been implanted using C 2 H 2 plasma ion implantation. The experimental results show that ion implantation may effectively enhance the gas barrier capability.

PI surfaces were modified by RF plasma sputtering of a PTFE target. Ultrathin fluoropolymer films of 10-50 run thickness were deposited. The sputter-deposited polymeric films were characterized by XPS, ToF-SIMS and FT-IR spectroscopy. The results indicated that the chemical composition and molecular structure of the films depended strongly on the type of the sputtering gas used. Water contact angle measurements showed that the sputter-deposited PTFE film could effectively passivate the PI surface. The topography of the modified PI surface was investigated by AFM. The 180°-peel adhesion test results suggested that all the sputter-deposited films adhered strongly to the PI substrates.

Three types of polyimide membranes viz., Matrimid, Kapton and P84, were prepared by solution casting and solvent evaporation method to study the permeation of CO 2 and CH 4 gases. Barrier properties were investigated as a function of feed pressure for pure gases and feed composition for the binary mixtures of CO 2 and CH 4 . Kapton polyimide, prepared by imidization of polyamic acid, showed an increase in permeability, but reduction in selectivity, due to the occurrence of plasticization at higher feed CO 2 concentrations. Matrimid was found to exhibit the highest permeability and was studied in greater detail, due to the feasibility in its scale-up into a hollow fiber modular configuration for commercial application. Matrimid was characterized by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy and X-ray diffractometry (XRD) to assess the intermolecular interactions and to understand the separation profiles. The effect of feed flow was evaluated by studying the permeation behavior of flat sheet membrane in dead-end operation mode with the hollow fiber module operated in crossflow feed mode. For pure gases, Matrimid hollow fiber membrane exhibited a CO 2 permeability of 12.7 Barrers with a CO 2 /CH 4 selectivity of 40 at the feed pressure of 20 bar. At the same pressure, for binary mixture feed of 5 mol % CO 2 in methane, the module gave a permeability of 7.4 Barrers with a selectivity of 21. The total binary mixture permeability was determined at the feed CO 2 concentrations varying from 0 to 20 mol % to demonstrate the preferential sorption of CO 2 in Matrimid membrane.

The focus of this study was to explore automated printing technology (APT) as an alternative means to manual methods for nanoliter dried spot sample preparation of liquid samples for micro x-ray fluorescence analysis (MXRF). APT was used successfully to dispense 20 and 50 nl volumes of multielemental standard solutions onto AP1 and Kapton film substrates. Automated droplet deposition was rapid and minimized operator skill and human error in the sample preparation process. Dried spots prepared by APT were generally circular in shape and similar in appearance to those prepared by manual dried spot deposition techniques. Furthermore, multiple dried spots could be accurately and reproducibly deposited in the same precise location on the film substrate surface, allowing for increased sample loadings within the MXRF analysis area for higher elemental sensitivity. The characteristics of the substrate did affect the quality of dried spot formation, with irregularly shaped spots forming on the thicker, more hydrophobic Kapton film, especially with higher droplet mass loadings. Adverse effects of irregular spot formation on quantitative analysis could be easily minimized by increasing the MXRF analysis area to encompass the entire dried spot residue. Nanoliter dried spot sample preparation is useful not only for MXRF analysis of liquid samples, but can also be applied to other analytical techniques such as IR, Raman or UV/fluorescence spectroscopy, the applications of which can benefit from rapid sample throughput and matrix reduction. Copyright © 2005 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

The atmospheric plasma > jet system was investigated for deposition of oxide layes on polymet (kapton) thin films on kapton, silicon and quartz glass substrates. As growth precursors for ZnO films, Zn-acetylacetonate vapors were used. Deposited ZnO films on both kapton and quartz glass contained hexagonal crystalline phase. They were optically transparent and had an electrical conductivity σ 10 - 1 -10 0 S.cm - 1 .

Surface modification of polyimide films such as Kapton E(N) and Upilex S by argon plasma was investigated because of the enhanced adhesive strength with sputtered copper. Peel tests demonstrated this improvement, with a peel strength of 0.7 and 1.2 g/mm for unmodified Kapton E(N) and Upilex S, respectively, and 110.3 and 98 g/mm for argon plasma–modified Kapton E(N) and Upilex S, respectively, in certain plasma conditions. This study showed that the enhanced adhesive strength of polyimide films with sputtered copper by argon plasma was strongly affected by the surface characteristics such as surface morphology and surface energy of polyimide films. Atomic force microscopy and the sessile drop method indicated that the surface roughness and surface energy of the polyimide films were greatly increased by argon plasma, resulting in highly increased peel strength of the polyimide films with sputtered copper. It was observed in electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA) that the increased surface energy of the polyimide films from argon plasma was a result of more of the surface being composed of O and N and of the increased number of CO, CO, and CN chemical bonds. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 99: 744–755, 2006

Surface modification of polyimide films Kapton E(N) and Upilex S by nitrogen plasmas were investigated for their enhanced adhesion strength with sputtered coppers. Peel tests demonstrate this improvement, with peel strengths of 7 and 12 N/m for unmodified Kapton E(N) and Upilex S, and 1522 and 1401 N/m for nitrogen plasma-modified Kapton E(N) and Upilex S at certain plasma conditions. Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and the sessile drop method indicated the surface roughness, and the surface energy of polyimide films were highly increased by nitrogen plasmas. This study shows the enhanced adhesion strengths of polyimide films with sputtered coppers by nitrogen plasmas, and these nitrogen plasmas were strongly affected by the surface characteristics of polyimide films. Electron spectroscopy for chemical analysis (ESCA) observed the increased surface energy on polyimide films by nitrogen plasmas was due to the increased surface composition of O and the increased chemical bond of CO. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part B: Polym Phys 43: 2023–2038, 2005

A novel positive-type photosensitive polyimide (PSPI) with a low dielectric constant was developed. The PSPI system was composed of soluble block PI (Bco-PI) with a hydroxy group and diazonaphthoquinone as a photoreactive compound. The base Bco-PI was prepared by a direct one-pot polycondensation of 2,2-bis(3-amino-4-hydroxy-phenylhexafluoropropane), 2,2-bis[4-(4-aminophenoxy)phenyl]hexafluoropropane, and cyclohexanetetracarboxylic dianhydride in the presence of a γ-valerolactone and pyridine catalyst system using N-methyl-2-pyrrolidone as the solvent. The film of Bco-PI was colorless and transparent, both important factors for a PSPI. Photosensitive soluble block PI (Bco-PI), containing 20 wt % ester of 2,3,4-trihydroxybenzophenone with 1,2-naphthoquinone-(2)-diazide-5-sulfonic acid (NT200), showed a sensitivity of 350 mJ/cm2 and a contrast of 1.20 when it was exposed to UV light, followed by development with 5% tetramethylammonium hydroxide aqueous solution at room temperature. The estimated optical dielectric constants of the PIs with and without NT200 were 2.68 and 2.75, respectively. These values were significantly lower than those of conventional aromatic PIs, such as Kapton film (50EN). © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 98: 15–21, 2005

Surface imide hydrolysis of Kapton HN polyimide films in a 1 M KOH aqueous solution was studied using dynamic contact angle measurements, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (TOF-SIMS). The surface energy of Kapton HN increased quickly upon KOH treatment due to the formation of polar polyamate. Prolonged treatment led to a jump in surface energy that we ascribe to the onset of etching causing increased surface roughness. Potassium depth profiles of treated Kapton HN samples measured by XPS and TOF-SIMS demonstrated that during the first 10 minutes of 1 M KOH treatment the modification depth increased rapidly. Thereafter the thickness of the modified layer no longer increased. For Kapton H films, however, the development of etching was much slower and a steady increase in modification depth was observed even after long treatment times. The different behaviours between Kapton HN and Kapton H films in alkali solutions are analysed and discussed. Copyright © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry

Several studies of a systematic dependence on projectile atomic number (z) of the values of the two prominent target parameters of modified Bethe–Bloch theory have been published over the past 3 years. The target materials for which parameter values were extracted from stopping power measurements by analyses with modified Bethe–Bloch theory were initially the four organic (co)polymers—formvar, polyimide, polysulfone, and vyns—and the cobalt-base alloy, havar. An additional (in press) study for the frequently utilized target materials, aluminum and copper, and for titanium and zinc targets, revealed considerable corroboration of the initially discovered trends. The scope of the investigation has been enlarged in the current study to include analyses of measurements with light projectiles of the stopping powers of 11 halogenated hydrocarbons, and with both light projectiles and heavy ions of the stopping powers of kapton (a polyimide), polycarbonate, havar, and nickel. The results of this, most recent, study are also generally corroborative of the previously established pattern of behavior of the two prominent parameters of modified Bethe–Bloch theory. © 2003 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Quantum Chem, 2003

A new preparation method has been developed in order to avoid the breaking of brittle samples for plan-view TEM investigation during and after mechanical and ion beam thinning. The thinning procedure is carried out on a reduced size piece of the sample (about 1.6 x 0.8 mm(2) or about 1-1.6 mm diameter) that is embedded into a 3-mm-diameter Ti disk, which fits the sample holder of the TEM. The small sample size and the supporting metal disk assure the mechanical stability and minimize the possibility of breaking during and after the preparation: The Ti disk is placed on adhesive kapton tape, a cut piece of the sample is put into the slot of the disk, pressed onto the tape and embedded with glue. The tape keeps the parts in place and in the same plane, keeps the sample surface safe from the embedding glue and can be removed easily after the glue solidifies. Subsequently, the embedded sample is thinned from the rear by well-known mechanical and ion beam techniques until electron transparency. This simple solution lowers the risk of failed sample preparation remarkably and makes it possible to reduce the thickness of the sample to about 50 microm by mechanical thinning. As a result, dimpling becomes unnecessary and low angle ion milling gives a large transparent area for TEM. Its efficiency has been proved by successful preparation of numerous thin film samples on Si, sapphire, and glass substrates. The method is compatible with the widespread cross-sectional thinning procedures, and can be easily adopted by TEM laboratories.

High-performance, all-aromatic, insoluble, engineering thermoplastic polyimides, such as pyromellitic dianhydride and 4,4'-oxydianiline (PMDA-ODA) (Kapton), exhibit exceptional thermal stability (up to ≈600 °C) and mechanical properties (Young's modulus exceeding 2 GPa). However, their thermal resistance, which is a consequence of the all-aromatic molecular structure, prohibits processing using conventional techniques. Previous reports describe an energy-intensive sintering technique as an alternative technique for processing polyimides with limited resolution and part fidelity. This study demonstrates the unprecedented 3D printing of PMDA-ODA using mask-projection stereolithography, and the preparation of high-resolution 3D structures without sacrificing bulk material properties. Synthesis of a soluble precursor polymer containing photo-crosslinkable acrylate groups enables light-induced, chemical crosslinking for spatial control in the gel state. Postprinting thermal treatment transforms the crosslinked precursor polymer to PMDA-ODA. The dimensional shrinkage is isotropic, and postprocessing preserves geometric integrity. Furthermore, large-area mask-projection scanning stereolithography demonstrates the scalability of 3D structures. These unique high-performance 3D structures offer potential in fields ranging from water filtration and gas separation to automotive and aerospace technologies.

Cellulose, the most abundant natural polymer, is renewable, biodegradable, and cost competitive. This paper reports the development of a high-performance triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) with both contacting materials made from cellulosic materials. Cellulose nanofibrils (CNFs) are used as the raw material, and chemical reaction approaches are employed to attach nitro groups and methyl groups to cellulose molecules to change the tribopolarities of CNF, which in turn significantly enhances the triboelectric output. Specifically, the nitro-CNF possesses a negative surface charge density of 85.8 µC m−2, while the methyl-CNF possesses a positive surface charge density of 62.5 µC m−2, reaching 71% and 52% of that for fluorinated ethylene propylene (FEP), respectively. The figure of merit of the nitro-CNF and methyl-CNF is quantified to be 0.504 and 0.267, respectively, comparable to or exceeding a number of common synthetic polymers, such as Kapton, polyvinylidene fluoride, and polyethylene. The TENG fabricated from nitro-CNF paired with methyl-CNF demonstrates an average voltage output of 8 V and current output of 9 µA, which approaches the same level obtained from TENG made from FEP. This work demonstrates a successful strategy of using environmentally friendly, abundant cellulosic materials for replacing the synthetic polymers in TENG development.

Thermoelectric films on flexible substrates are of interest for the integration of thermoelectric in wearable devices. In this work, copper selenide films are achieved by a novel low‐temperature technique, namely pulsed hybrid reactive magnetron sputtering (PHRMS). A brief introduction to the basic chemistry and physics involved during growth is included to explain its fundamentals. PHRMS is a single‐step, room temperature (RT), fabrication process carried out in another ways conventional vacuum sputtering system. It does not require high‐temperature post‐annealing to obtain films with great thermoelectric performance. It is, therefore, compatible with polymeric substrates like Kapton tape. Several sets of films covering a large exploratory compositional range (from Cu/Se = 1 to 9) are deposited and their microstructure and thermoelectric properties are analyzed at RT. Power factors as high as 1.1 mW m−1 K−2 in the in‐plane direction and thermal conductivities as low as κ = 0.8 ± 0.1 W m−1 K−1 in the out‐of‐plane direction have been obtained for β‐Cu2Se films. Consequently, a figure of merit of 0.4 at RT can be estimated under the assumption that for this polycrystalline cubic phase no additional anisotropy in the thermoelectric properties is introduced by the planar configuration. Moreover, PHRMS is also industrially scalable and compatible with the in‐line fabrication of other selenides., This work was supported by 7th framework European project Nano‐structured High‐efficiency Thermo‐Electric Converters project NANOHITEC 263306, ERC Nano‐TEC project, the national project PHOMENTA MAT2011‐27911 and Intramural project INFANTE. J.A.P.‐T. acknowledges the Spanish Ministerio de Economia y Competitividad for their FPI grant. The authors wish to thank the National Synchrotron Light Source at the Brazilian Synchrotron (LNLS)—XRD2 beamline—in Campinas, Brazil, for the SR‐GIXRD measurements. The authors acknowledge the X‐SEM Laboratory at IMM (VERIOS 460 from FEI) and funding from MINECO under project CSIC 13‐4E‐1794 with support from EU (FEDER, FSE).

Nanomaterials offer an attractive solution to the challenges faced for low-cost printed electronics, with applications ranging from additively manufactured sensors to wearables. This study reports hysteresis-free carbon nanotube thin-film transistor (CNT-TFTs) fabricated entirely using an aerosol jet printing technique; this includes the printing of all layers: semiconducting CNTs, metallic electrodes, and insulating gate dielectrics. It is shown that, under appropriate printing conditions, the gate dielectric ink can be reliably printed and yield negligible hysteresis and low threshold voltage in CNT-TFTs. Flexible CNT-TFTs on Kapton film demonstrate minimal variations in performance for over 1000 cycles of aggressive bending tests. New insights are also gained concerning the role of charge trapping in Si substrate-supported devices, where exposure to high substrate fields results in irreversible degradation. This work is a critical step forward as it enables a completely additive, maskless method to fully print CNT-TFTs of direct relevance for the burgeoning areas of flexible/foldable, wearable, and biointegrated electronics.

Interaction of high energy electrons with spacecraft materials, such as polyimide (PI, Kapton®), is known to cause their physical degradation. In this paper, we investigated chemical and optical changes in Kapton® during and after irradiation with high energy (90 keV) electrons. Several complimentary characterization techniques were utilized to qualify and quantify radiation induced property changes in the material, including directional-hemispherical reflectance (DHR) coupled with Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), and the surface potential decay method. It was found that the conductivity of radiation-damaged PI is significantly increased compared to that of the pristine material. This change is attributed to the creation of radicals during irradiation, which could play a critical role in the transport of electrons through the bulk of the damaged material. Excessive radicals are likely originating from a radiation-induced breakage of phenyl rings and/or ether bridges forming a metastable carbonyl.

By integrating a triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) and an electrostatic actuation system (EAS), two kinds of self-powered EAS are designed for manipulating the movement of both microfluid and tiny solid objects. The mechanical triggering of the TENG can generate an extremely high electrostatic field inside EAS and thus the tiny object (liquid or solid) in the EAS can be actuated by the Coulomb force. Accordingly, the tribomotion of TENG can be used as both the driving power and control signal for the EAS. The TENG device with a contact surface of 70 cm2 can drive a water droplet to move across a gap of 2 cm. Meanwhile, the confluence of two droplets with the same charge polarity and different components can also be induced and controlled by this self-powered EAS. In addition, based on the same working principle, this EAS also demonstrates its capability for manipulating solid object (e.g., a tiny steel pellet). By sliding the Kapton film along a segmented annular electrode, the tiny pellet can well follow the rotated motion of the Kapton film. The demonstrated concept of this self-powered EAS has excellent applicability for various micro/miniature actuation devices, electromechanical systems, human–machine interaction, etc.

Polyetherimides are versatile melt-processable engineering resins. A series of fluoro-polyetherimides compositions based on diether-containing diamines were designed on paper and their dielectric constants (ϵ′) estimated before their synthesis. Experimentally determined ϵ′ values were compared with the estimated values. The amorphous polyetherimides containing bis-trifluoromethyl groups exhibited not only low dielectric constants—lower than those of the commercially available polyetherimide ULTEM 1000 and polyimide Kapton H at 1 kHz—but also excellent long-term thermo-oxidative stability and reduced water absorption relative to non-fluorinated polyimides.

In this tudy two organic soluble polyimides were successfully synthesized via polycondensation of a hexafluoropropyl group contained dianhydride with two kinds of diamines. These two polyimides (DMDB/6FDA, OT/6FDA) can be dissolved in most aprotic solvents (for example, NMP, DMAc) and many other common solvents (for example, THF, DMSO). The soluble polyimides also show food thermal stability and high absorption at the KrF excimer laser wavelength (λ = 248 nm). (The absorption coefficients of DMDB/6FDA and OT/6FDA were 1.26 × 10 5 cm -1 and 1.49 × 10 5 cm -1 , respectively.) The photoablation properties of the polyimides were studied in detail. Due to incorporating the hexafluoropropyl group into the chamical structure, these two polyimides have higher etching rates than Kapton (a commercial PI film). The effects of exposure parameters on linewidth and taper-angle of polyimides with different chamical structure were also investigated here. Under the proper control of exposure conditions, good precision patterns with near-vertical side wall can be produced. The 300 mm thick comb-shape and Fresnel patterns with 10 mm linewidth have been made. Moreover, the complementary metallic microstrutures have also been realized in the following electroforming procedure. The results showed that these two soluble polyimides were very suitable for KrF Laser LIGA process.

A series of polyimide and copolyimide films were prepared by film casting, drying, and thermal imidization from the respective precursor poly(amic acid) (PAA) and copoly(amic acid) solutions derived from two dianhydrides, pyromellitic dianhydride (PMDA) and 3,3′,4,4′-benzophenonetetracarboxylic dianhydride (BTDA), and two diamines, 4,4′-oxydianiline (ODA) and a proprietary aromatic diamine (PD) as monomers. Depending on the solution's inherent viscosity value (molecular weight) and the nature of the polymer chains (derived from rigid or flexible monomers), precursor poly(amic acid) and copoly(amic acid) solution concentrations of 8–12% (w/w) were found to be suitable for the preparation of good quality polyimide/copolyimide films. The recovery of film toughness and creasability from the brittleness at the intermediate temperature of the cure cycle depended not only on the molecular weight of the precursor poly(amic acids)/copoly(amic acids) but also on their chain flexibility. The poly(amic acid) derived from both rigid dianhydride and diamine practically gave rise to a brittle film of polyimide even after curing to 360°C. The resulting polyimide and copolyimide films were compared with Du Pont's Kapton H film. The density of the films was in the range 1.39–1.42 g/cm3. The thickness of most of the films was in the range 20–30 μm. The HPF 3 film, based on PMDA–PD, appeared to be highly colored (reddish brown), and the HPF 2 film, based on BTDA–ODA, had the lightest yellow coloring among the films in this investigation, including Kapton H film. HPF 2, HPF 6, and HPF 8 films were more amorphous than the other films. © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 82: 976–988, 2001

A series of amorphous fluoro-polyetherimides based on 2,2'-bis(3,4-dicarboxyphenyl) hexafluropropane dianhydride (6FDA) and di-ether-containing diamines 4,4'-bis(3-aminophenoxy)diphenyl sulfone (m-SED), 4,4'-bis(4-aminophenoxy)diphenyl sulfone (pSED), 4,4-bis(4-aminophenoxy)diphenyl propane (BPADE) were synthesized. These melt processable polyetherimide polymers from pSED and BPADE showed excellent electrical properties. The dielectric constants, 2.74 and 2.65 at 10 MHz respectively, are lower than commercially available polyetherimide ULTEM@ 1000, and polyimide Kapton@ H films. In addition, we found that trifluoromethyl groups-containing polyimides not only show extraordinaxy electrical properties, but they also exhibit excellent long-term thermo-oxidative stability and reduced water absorption relative to non-fluorinated polyimides. The weight retention of these fluoro-polyetherimides at 3 15°C for 300 h in air varies from 93% to 98%. Whereas, their moisture absorption at 100 RH at 50°C was in the range of 0.3% to 1.05%, which is much lower than those of Ultem 1000 and Kapton H. In the case of fluoro-polyetherimides from pSED and m-SED @ara and meta isomers) diamines with 'ether' and sulfonyl (-SO,-) spacer groups, the d-spacing and Tg values decreased from 4.7d to 4.56A and 293°C to 244°C respectively. Similarly, the transparency of these polymer films (in the range of 80% to 90%) at 500 nm solar wavelength was higher than Ultem 1000 and Kapton H. 1. I"R0DUCTION romatic polyimides possess outstanding thermal A mechanical and electrical properties as well as excellent chemical resistance (1). The search for new polyimides with improved processability and higher glass transition temperatures (TJ than the commercially available polyetherimide Ultem 1000 has received significant attention from both academia and industries. It is also known that structural rigidity of dianhydrides contributes to the increase in the glass transition temperatures of those polyimides in the range of 300 to 400°C. Therefore, because of their poor solubility in common organic solvents and high softening temperatures, uses of these polymers in industrial applications are limited. Because of these

Materials deployed on long-duration space missions such as the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and the proposed International Space Station (ISS) are subject to high ultraviolet (UV) radiation fluences. Some UV radiation present in space has photon energy high enough to dissociate organic polymer molecular bonds. Induced chemical structure modifications can cause changes in optical, structural, and thermal properties. The present work investigates UV radiation effects on DuPont Kapton® H polyimide, polyarylene ether benzimidazole (PAEBI), and DuPont Teflon® fluorinated ethylene-propylene (FEP). UV irradiated polymers were characterized with in situ and ex situ spectroscopic ellipsometry (SE). Ellipsometric data acquired on UV modified polymers were best modeled as an exponentially graded layer, as opposed to a single layer or linearly graded layer model. Because photon intensity decays exponentially as a function of depth into absorbing materials, an exponentially graded model should be the most physically realistic. Ellipsometric data provided information about changes in UV absorption spectra, depth of damage, and growth trends in the damaged layer.

First results of an inter-laboratory comparison (27 participants in Europe, Japan and USA) of XPS data obtained with non-conducting samples are presented. Binding energies of Al 2s for alumina, N 1s and imide C 1s for Kapton and Sr 3p 3/2 for a strontium titanate film on glass were obtained after static charge referencing with the help of 15 nm gold particles deposited at the surface of the test samples. For the alumina sample C 1s static charge referenced data are also presented. Repeat standard deviations (s r ), between standard deviations (s b ), reproducibility standard deviations (s R ) and total means are evaluated from the experimental data. It can be stated that although the repeat standard deviation is as small as 0.05 eV in the best case, the standard deviation characterizing the reproducibility of the method is obviously not better than 0.15 eV in the best case at the present time. The knowledge of these standard deviations is important for metrology, validations of analytical procedures relying on qualitative photoelectron spectroscopy and XPS databanking.

A simple technique of thermal graft copolymerization of 1-vinyl imidazole (VIDZ) on pristine and argon plasma pretreated fluorinated polyimide (FPI) films with simultaneous lamination of copper foils was demonstrated. The simultaneous thermal grafting and lamination process was carried out in the temperature range of 80–140°C under atmospheric conditions and in the complete absence of a polymerization initiator. Three different FPI samples of different chemical structures were employed in the present study. An optimum T-peel strength about 15 N/cm was achieved for the copper/FPI laminate. The adhesion strength, however, decreased with increasing fluorine content in the FPI film. The onset of cohesive failure occurred in the FPI film for assemblies with T-peel strength greater than 6 N/cm. The T-peel strengths are reported as a function of the argon plasma pretreatment time of the FPI films and thermal lamination temperature. The adhesion strengths were compared to that of the similarly prepared copper/polyimide (Kapton HN) laminate. Time-dependent water contact angle (Θ) measurements indicated that the surfaces of FPI films are significantly more hydrophobic and more resistant to water diffusion or hydration than the Kapton HN films. The surface compositions of the pristine FPI films, as well as the delaminated FPI films and copper foils were studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The thickness of the graft VIDZ polymer layer was in the order of 200 nm, as derived from the cross-sectional view of the scanning electron micrograph. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 74: 1478–1489, 1999

Kapton film, poly[(N,N′-oxydiphenylene)pyromellitimide], was modified by silane-coupling reactions using 3′(trimethoxysilyl)propoxy-2-hydroxypro-pyl-1,3-diazole (Si–imidazole) to improve the adhesion with copper metal. The Kapton film surface was first treated with argon plasma for 30 s, then dipped into a methanol solution of Si–imidazole (0.01 wt %), followed by heating at 110°C for 90 min. The Kapton surfaces, modified by the argon plasma and Si–imizadole coupling reactions, were analyzed by water contact-angle measurement, atomic force microscopy, and XPS. The Si–imidazole modification showed a large increase in adhesion between the copper metal and the Kapton film. The peel strength of the copper metal/Kapton film joint increased from 0.94 to 2.4 N/5 mm. The failure occurred at the interface between the Si–imidazole and the Kapton film layer. We conclude that the Si–imidazole modification is an effective treatment for improvement of the adhesion between copper metal and Kapton film. © 1999 John Wiley & Sons, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 73: 1645–1654, 1999