Atmospheric Plasma Process for Superhydrophobic Coatings

Being able to produce functional coatings or modify surface properties without using solvents is desirable in many technical processes. Various types of plasma systems have been developed for this purpose; but, most of them are operational only under vacuum conditions, limiting their practical applications. Our group is equipped with a scanning atmospheric rf plasma system that can be applied to a large surface area at a low power and we are currently investigating its use for superhydrophobic coatings and surface decontamination.∗