Matrix-Assisted Pulsed Laser Evaporation of Organic Thin Films: Applications in Biology and Chemical Sensors

Abstract

Polymer and biomolecule processing for medical and electronics applications, i.e. the fabrication of sensors and biosensors, microarrays, or lab on chip devices is a cornerstone field which shows great promise. Laser based thin film deposition techniques such as pulsed laser deposition or matrix-assisted pulsed laser evaporation (MAPLE) are competing with conventional methods for integrating new materials with tailored properties for novel technological developments. Successful polymer and protein thin film deposition requires several key elements for depositing viable and functional thin films, i.e. the characteristics of the laser depositing system, the choice of targets and receiver substrates, etc. This chapter reviews the following topics: brief presentation of the MAPLE process including several examples of polymer materials deposited by MAPLE, thus illustrating the potential of the technique as a gentle laser-assisted deposition method. In particular, the "synthesis" of new materials, their analysis and correlation of the bulk and interface properties to its bioenvironment shall be discussed as a method to tackle some bioengineering issues. We will also focus on recent breakthroughs of the MAPLE technique for the fabrication of functional devices, i.e. sensor devices based either on chemoresponsive polymers or on proteins.

Degradation Behavior of Polymers Used as Coating Materials for Drug Delivery—A Basic Review

“…The laser-based technologies are widely used for the fabrication of polymeric coatings, exhibiting controlled thickness, good adhesion to the substrate, low material consumption, and stoichiometry conservation of the growing film [ 173 ]. Laser-based thin film deposition techniques (e.g., matrix-assisted pulsed laser evaporation (MAPLE)) are competing with conventional methods used for the development of new materials with tailored properties, a core advantage being the ability to combine multiple materials in different configurations (layered or blended) [ 183 ]. The deposition of viable and functional thin films require several key elements: laser depositing system characteristics, the choice of targets and receiver substrates, etc.…”

“…The deposition of viable and functional thin films require several key elements: laser depositing system characteristics, the choice of targets and receiver substrates, etc. [ 183 ]. Cristescu et al adopted various protocols in order to perform MAPLE experiments, since pullulan, like most polysaccharides, has poor solubility in common organic solvents.…”

Advances in Laser Ablation Synthesized Silicon-Based Nanomaterials for the Prevention of Bacterial Infection

“…These materials are very sensitive to temperature and degrade easily. In order to achieve a fine coating of these organic materials, a modification called matrix-assisted pulsed laser evaporation (MAPLE) is used [114]. In MAPLE, the sensitive compound is dissolved or dispersed in an inert solvent and then frozen to form a solid substrate.…”

Complex Catalytic Materials Based on the Perovskite-Type Structure for Energy and Environmental Applications

“…A photograph of a MAPLE target can be seen in Figure 7. The laser wavelength is selected in such a way that only the solvent reacts when the laser beam hits the frozen target [143,144]. In Table 6 the experimental conditions for different types of perovskite materials grown by PLD and PLD-RF techniques are presented.…”

“…A photograph of a MAPLE target can be seen in Figure 7. The laser wavelength is selected in such a way that only the solvent reacts when the laser beam hits the frozen target [143,144]. The difference between this technique and PLD lays in the target preparation, which generates other laser-material interaction mechanisms [145].…”