Selective Infiltration in Polymer Hybrid Thin Films as a Gas-Encapsulation Layer for Stretchable Electronics.

The infiltration depth and water vapor transmission rate (WVTR) were explored in a variety of AlO-polymer hybrid layers as thin gas barrier films by filling the free volumes of polymers in the subsurface region with AlO using the atomic layer infiltration (ALI) method. Among all, the prepared AlO-polyethylene terephthalate (PET), AlO-polyimide, and AlO-Nylon 6 hybrid thin layers with the infiltration depth in the nanometer ranges showed extremely low WVTR values (<10 g m day) in a Ca dot corrosion test. Furthermore, we observed selective infiltration among the two polymers [perfluoroalkoxy alkane (PFA) and PET] by a preferential growth of AlO in the PET polymer that might be based on effective functional group anchoring in the ALI process.

Ultra Gas-Proof Polymer Hybrid Thin Layer.

Hermetic sealing is an important technology for isolating and protecting air-sensitive materials and is key in the development of foldable and stretchable electronic devices. Here we report an ultra gas-proof polymer hybrid thin layer prepared by filling the free volume of the polymer with AlO using gas-phase atomic layer infiltration. The high-density polymer-inorganic hybrid shows extremely low gas transmission rate, below the detection limit of the Ca corrosion test (water vapor transmission rate <10 g m day).