Tunable, permanent and instantly available super-wettability states on metal surfaces by laser texturing and plasma coating

Wettability, the ability of a liquid to spread on or repel from a surface, holds particular significance for applications requiring extreme control of liquid interaction, including self-cleaning, anti-icing, dropwise condensation, anti-fogging, and enhanced fluid transport. This work investigates the synergistic combination of laser surface texturing and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) to achieve tunable, permanent, and instantly available super-wettability states on metal surfaces. Ultrashort laser pulses were employed to produce various surface textures, ranging from fine nanoscale ripples to rougher microtextures such as microgrooves, spikes, and holes, on stainless steel AISI 304, copper, and the titanium alloy Ti64. PECVD coatings, including thin layers of glass and polymers, were subsequently applied to these textures to modulate surface chemistry and achieve the desired wettability.The results demonstrate that superhydrophilic surfaces with a water contact angle θ < 10° were achieved by combining rough textures with thin glass coatings, offering long-term stability that could be simply renewed via ultrasonic cleaning. Conversely, superhydrophobic surfaces with a water contact angle θ > 150° were instantly obtained using polymer coatings on rough textures. These functionalized surfaces also exhibited exceptional liquid repellence for complex liquids, such as milk and beer, making them particularly suitable for special applications using solutions or emulsions. The integration of laser texturing and PECVD coating provides a versatile and simple pathway for fabricating functional surfaces with tunable wettability and long-term performance across multiple metals and fluids.