Methods of generating liquidphobic surfaces

• US 8,540,889 B1
• Filed: 11/17/2009
• Issued: 09/24/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/19/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Shoei Chemical Inc.
• Original Assignee: Nanosys Incorporated (Shoei Electronic Materials, Inc.)
• Inventors: Hartlove, Jason, Barr, Ronald, Dubrow, Robert S.
• Primary Examiner(s): Vinh, Lan
• Assistant Examiner(s): Lu, Jiong-Ping
• Application Number:
  US12/620,244
• Time in Patent Office: 1,407 Days
• Field of Search: None
• US Class Current: 216/54
• CPC Class Codes: B05D 5/083 involving the use of fluoropolymers

Abstract

The present invention relates to methods of generating liquidphobic surfaces, and surfaces prepared by these methods. The methods include generating sub-micron-structured surfaces and coating these surfaces with a liquidphobic coating, such as a hydrophobic coating.

Claims

1. A method of generating a liquidphobic surface, comprising:

(a) providing a first substrate;

(b) providing a sub-micron-structured surface on the first substrate by growing upstanding sub-micron nanowires on the substrate which extend perpendicular to the substrate, the nanowires having an aspect ratio (length;

width) of 2 or greater;

(c) transferring a sub-micron-structure complementary to the sub-micron-structured surface to a surface of a second substrate; and

(d) disposing a liquidphobic coating on the surface of the second substrate;

wherein the transferring in (c) comprises evaporating and/or plating metal onto the sub-micron-structured surface of the first substrate, resulting in a complementary sub-micron-structure in the metal.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the providing comprises providing a first substrate comprising a metal.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the providing comprises providing a nickel substrate.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein the disposing comprises disposing a perfluorinated organic coating.

5. A method of generating a liquidphobic surface, comprising:

(a) generating a sub-micron-structured surface on a first substrate by growing sub-micron upstanding nanowires on the substrate which extend perpendicular to the substrate, the nanowires having an aspect ratio (length;

width) of 2 or greater;

(b) transferring a sub-micron-structure complementary to the sub-micron-structured surface to a surface of a second substrate; and

(c) disposing a liquidphobic coating on the surface of the second substrate;

wherein the transferring in (b) comprises evaporating and/or plating metal onto the sub-micron-structured surface of the first substrate, resulting in a complementary sub-micron-structure in the metal.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein the generating in (a) comprises:

i. providing a substrate;

ii. generating a sub-micron-structured surface on the surface of the substrate to generate a transfer substrate; and

iii. transferring a sub-micron-structure complementary to the sub-micron-structured surface of the transfer substrate to a surface of the first substrate.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the providing comprises providing a silicon substrate.

8. The method of claim 5, wherein nickel is evaporated and then plated onto the sub-micron-structured surface of the first substrate.