Electroless metallization onto polymeric surfaces

Electroless metallization onto polymeric surfaces (EMPS) is a widely used technique to deposit metal onto otherwise nonconductive surfaces, improving their physical and optical properties. This technique has been utilized for many years across a wide variety of applications, such as automotive, biolabeling and optical waveguiding, though the exact mechanism of the process remains unknown. EMPS is uniquely different from other metal deposition techniques such as sputter coating or chemical vapor deposition in that functionalization is achieved at ambient temperature through chemical modification of the polymer surface and that the metal is coated conformally onto the substrate In the NPM group, we are seeking ways to control the nanoscale morphology of the deposited metal, achieved through EMPS, while trying to uncover the exact mechanism by which the deposition process occurs. Silver metal is typically deposited using EMPS due to its superior optical and physical properties, such as conductivity, though other noble metals such as platinum, gold and copper may be used.