Dielectric properties of plasma polymerized poly(ethylene oxide) thin films

Abstract Plasma polymerized poly(ethylene oxide) (pPEO) thin films were deposited by plasma assisted physical vapor deposition (PAPVD) with a constant thickness of 500 nm. The crosslinking density of pPEO films was controlled through the discharge power. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) and broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS) were applied to analyze the structural peculiarities of these coatings. Both DSC and BDS detected an increase of the crosslink density with power, which correlated with the increasing dynamic glass transition temperature (Tg). It was shown that plasma power changes the structure of plasma polymer, and dielectric spectroscopy may be a suitable technique for structural analysis.