New insight into organosilicon plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition layers and their crosslinking behavior by calculating the degree of Si-networking

An investigation into strongly organosilicon plasma-polymeric coatings has been performed with the goal of developing a deeper understanding of the relationship between the physical properties and the chemical structure. The overall elemental composition has been analyzed using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and micro elemental analysis. Additional XPS peak fitting and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy analysis have been undertaken and physical properties such as Young's modulus and mass density have been determined. The chemical structure of the coatings is discussed taking into account conventional Si-O crosslinking and also an independent second bridge-building mechanism. Based on this suggestion, a least-squares algorithm has been used to calculate the network structure including a new index for the degree of crosslinking. This enables very similar plasma-polymeric coatings to be distinguished.