Controlled roughening of poly(ethylene terephthalate) by photoablation : study of wetting and contact angle hysteresis

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Abstract
The smooth surface of crystalline poly(ethylene terephthalate) films is readily roughened by ablative photodecomposition obtained by absorption of the pulsed far-UV radiation of the excimer laser. The amplitude of this roughness (of the order of 1 μm) is controlled by the intensity of the pulsed radiation and by the number of pulses delivered to the surface. Structure and orientation of the roughness are determined by the crystallinity of the polymer, which is very well controlled in commercial samples. The hysteresis of the contact angle generated by the roughness, is studied as a function of roughness amplitude and orientation for different poly(ethylene terephthalate) films. It is also shown that the three phases contact line of a liquid drop resting on the ablated surface is also affected by the roughness orientation