AVS 52nd International Symposium
    Surface Science Thursday Sessions
       Session SS1-ThM

Paper SS1-ThM11
Water Adsorption on a Polymer Surface

Thursday, November 3, 2005, 11:40 am, Room 200

Session: Water-Surface Interactions
Presenter: L.G. Rosa, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Authors: L.G. Rosa, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Ya.B. Losovyj, Louisiana State University
I.N. Yakovkin, Institute of Physics of National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine
P.A. Dowben, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Correspondent: Click to Email
Water absorption and adsorption on the thin films of the ferroelectric copolymer polyvinylidene fluoride with 30% trifluoroethylene, P(VDF-TrFE,70:30) has been explored by angle resolved thermal desorption, angle resolved photoemission spectroscopy, high resolution photoemission spectroscopy and x-ray diffraction. We observe that water is absorbed into the polymer bulk. When the near surface region is saturated, an ice layer at the surface of the polymer can be formed. Strong dipole - dipole interactions between the dipole of water and the dipole of the ferroelectric polymer play an important role in absorption and desorption, including but not limited to, isotopic exchange and dielectric properties. Adsorbed water seems to be a spectator to the many phase transition of the ferroelectric polymer particularly the ones at the surface and bulk.