MICROPATTERNING OF GOLD SUBSTRATES BASED ON POLY(PROPYLENE SULFIDE-BL-ETHYLENE GLYCOL), (PPS-PEG) BACKGROUND PASSIVATION AND THE MOLECULAR-ASSEMBLY PATTERNING BY LIFT-OFF (MAPL) TECHNIQUE.

Poly(propylene sulfide-bl-ethylene glycol (PPS-PEG) is an amphiphilic block copolymer that spontaneously adsorbs onto gold from solution. This results in the formation of a stable polymeric layer that renders the surface protein resistant when an appropriate architecture is chosen. The established molecular assembly patterning by lift-off (MAPL) technique can convert a prestructured resist film into a pattern of biointeractive chemistry and a noninteractive background. Employing the MAPL technique, we produced a micron-scale PPS-PEG pattern on a gold substrate, and then characterized the patterned structure with Time-of-Flight Secondary Ion Mass Spectrometry (TOF-SIMS) and Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). Subsequent exposure of the PPS-PEG/gold pattern to protein adsorption (full human serum) was monitored in situ; SPR-imaging (i-SPR) shows a selective adsorption of proteins on gold, but not on PPS-PEG areas. Analysis shows a reduction of serum adsorption up to 93% on the PPS-PEG areas as compared to gold, in good agreement with previous analysis of homogenously adsorbed PPS-PEG on gold. MAPL patterning of PPS-PEG block copolymers is straightforward, versatile and reproducible, and may be incorporated into biosensor-based surface analysis methods.