Nanometer-scale flow of molten polyethylene from a heated atomic force microscope tip. Academic Article

abstract

• We investigate the nanometer-scale flow of molten polyethylene from a heated atomic force microscope (AFM) cantilever tip during thermal dip-pen nanolithography (tDPN). Polymer nanostructures were written for cantilever tip temperatures and substrate temperatures controlled over the range 100-260C and while the tip was either moving with speed 0.5-2.0 m s(-1) or stationary and heated for 0.1-100 s. We find that polymer flow depends on surface capillary forces and not on shear between tip and substrate. The polymer mass flow rate is sensitive to the temperature-dependent polymer viscosity. The polymer flow is governed by thermal Marangoni forces and non-equilibrium wetting dynamics caused by a solidification front within the feature.

authors

• Felts, Jonathan

published proceedings

• Nanotechnology

author list (cited authors)

• Felts, J. R., Somnath, S., Ewoldt, R. H., & King, W. P.

citation count

• 43

complete list of authors

• Felts, Jonathan R||Somnath, Suhas||Ewoldt, Randy H||King, William P

publication date

• June 2012

publisher

• IOP Publishing  Publisher

published in

• Nanotechnology  Journal

keywords

• Equipment Design
• Equipment Failure Analysis
• Heating
• Micro-electrical-mechanical Systems
• Microscopy, Atomic Force
• Nanostructures
• Particle Size
• Polyethylene
• Solutions
• Transducers
• Transition Temperature

PubMed Central ID

• 22551550

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

• 10.1088/0957-4484/23/21/215301

start page

• 215301

end page

• 215301

volume

• 23

issue

• 21

URL

• http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/0957-4484/23/21/215301