High-density protein patterning through selective plasma-induced fluorocarbon deposition on Si substrates.

A novel method for fabrication of protein microarrays through selective plasma-induced modification of patterned substrates is presented. Exposing Si substrates bearing SiO(2) or Si(3)N(4) patterns to a c-C(4)F(8) plasma in a high-density plasma reactor, a fluorocarbon (FC) film was selectively deposited on Si areas, whereas the SiO(2) or Si(3)N(4) patterns were simultaneously etched. Optimizing the plasma parameters such as power, bias voltage and gas pressure, patterned substrates with highly selective protein adsorption capacities were obtained.