RF Magnetron Sputtered SiOx Coatings on Papers

Abstract

Silicon oxide (SiOx) were deposited on many substrates such as silicon, glass, and poly (ethylene terephthalate) (PET) and widely used in industry due to their excellent impressive barrier, electrical, optical and eco-friendly properties. However, few publications that focus on paper as substrate in sputtering have been found. SiOx films were deposited on papers by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The influences of process parameters, RF power density and deposition time on deposition rate, surface roughness, mechanical properties and humidity barrier of the films were investigated. The result from atomic force microscopy (AFM) applied to investigate the surface morphologies showed that papers being deposited SiOx (SiOx/Paper) films with the average roughness were much more homogenous and smoother than raw papers. Horizontal, vertical elastic modulus and yield strength of SiOx/Pap clearly increased. The water vapor transmission rate of SiOx/Paper films, which prepared at RF density of 2.78 W/cm2, argon (Ar) flux of 40 sccm and deposition time of 36 min decreased 15times, and the oxygen transmission rate did 10 times. Additional investigations regarding printability focusing on the color reproduction properties were also carried out.