Morphological dynamics of swelling-induced surface patterns in metal-capped polymer bilayer.

We report on the morphological dynamics of surface patterns induced by swelling of metal-capped polymer bilayer on a substrate. When the bilayer is subject to solvent vapor, the strain is generated in the polymer layer that is confined by the substrate and the metal capping layer. An increase in the strain induces the development of the stress in the bilayer to deform the lower polymer layer perpendicularly to the surface of the bilayer. Isotropic surface wave patterns results from the stress relaxation, the wave number of the patterns shows a characteristic temporal dependency on the swelling time, such that km(t) approximately t(-1/8). This temporal evolution accompanied by the morphological dynamics gives smaller value of the growth rate of the characteristic wavelength than that of the case of swelling of gel. (c) 2005 American Institute of Physics.