Effect of surface modification of glass substrates on adhesive strength of copper coatings

Abstract

The practicability of thin metallic coatings applied on glass substrates depends strongly on the adhesion strength properties. In the present research, the effects of surface modification on the adhesive properties of copper coatings were studied. The surface modification was performed by activation of glass substrate with a plasma energy source directly before coating deposition. The results were compared with the properties of a not-activated glass substrate. Different surface analyses such as confocal microscope, scanning electron microscope (SEM), combined with contact angle measurements were done to investigate the effects of plasma activation on float glass. Scratch tests and adhesion tensile tests were performed to evaluate the adhesive properties of the thin coatings. In order to perform the adhesion tests, adhesive film FM 1000 was used. The adhesive film is the only practical adhesive used for porous copper coatings sprayed on float glass. It was observed that surface modification by plasma treatment leads to a chemical reaction on the substrate surface and furthermore to an increased wettability of the glass substrate, whereas the surface roughness and the microstructure of the substrate does not change. Finally, the experiments showed an increase of the adhesion strength of the copper coatings.