Sonochemistry — a sound approach to surface modification

The surface modification of dielectric materials is required throughout the electronics industry. Traditional chemical methods however tend to be characterised by the use of hazardous substances, high temperature operation and long process times. Previous work has shown that significant surface modification of substrates used in electronic manufacturing can be achieved by applying ultrasound of an appropriate frequency through liquids as benign as water. In this work a number of factors which can affect the phenomenon of acoustic cavitation are investigated along with their subsequent impact on surface modification. It was found that all the process variations considered caused a greater weight loss compared to the standard sonochemical technique. However, adding a small amount of a surfactant containing product also increased roughness, improved wettability and produced samples with a dramatic change in morphology.