Adhesive Electroless Metallization of Fluoropolymeric Substrates

A process for producing patterned metal deposits on fluoropolymeric substrates is described. A metal ion-chelating organosilane is chemisorbed by self-assembly onto a fluoropolymer surface after radio-frequency glow discharge plasma surface hydroxylation. Positional modulation of the surface hydrophobicity is illustrated by wetting. The silane covalently binds an aqueous palladium catalyst and subsequent electroless deposition yields homogeneous or patterned metal deposits that exhibit excellent adhesion to the fluoropolymer.