Fabrication and characterisation of polymer thin-films derived from cineole using radio frequency plasma polymerisation

The development of organic polymer thin-films is critical for the progress of many fields including organic electronics and biomedical coatings. This paper describes the fabrication of an organic polymer thin film produced from 1,8-cineole via radio frequency plasma polymerisation. A deposition rate of 55 nm/min was obtained under the polymerisation conditions employed. Infrared spectroscopic analysis demonstrated that some functional groups observed in the monomer were retained after the polymerisation process, while new functional groups were introduced. The refractive index and extinction coefficient were estimated to be 1.543 (at 500 nm) and 0.001 (at 500 nm) respectively. The polymers were shown to be optically transparent. AFM images of the polymer established a very smooth and uniform surface with average roughness of 0.39 nm. Water contact angle data demonstrated that the surface was stable while in contact with water.