Plasma Printing and Related Techniques - Patterning of Surfaces Using Microplasmas at Atmospheric Pressure

The interest in applications of atmospheric‐pressure plasmas to solve surface‐technological tasks was originally motivated primarily by the expectation that major cost savings could be achieved if plasma‐based processes, conventionally run below 1 mbar, could now be performed at ambient pressure. However, it was soon recognized that, working at 1 bar, also completely new techniques are made feasible by the utilization of microdischarges, thanks to strongly reduced mean free paths of plasma constituents. The present contribution gives an overview of a number of possibilities, studied in the recent years, to apply atmospheric‐pressure microplasmas for the patterned coating or surface modification of two‐ and three‐dimensional substrates. Non‐equilibrium microplasmas generated at atmospheric pressure are the central tools to carry out direct surface patterning by area‐selective plasma‐based etching, chemical modification, or coating in plasma printing and related processes. With suitable “plasma stamps” two and three dimensional substrates can be structured. Minimum structure widths produced so far are 10 µm.