Atmospheric pressure non-thermal plasma assisted polymerization of poly (ethylene glycol) methylether methacrylate (PEGMA) on low density polyethylene (LDPE) films for enhancement of biocompatibility

This study focuses on the polymerization of poly (ethylene glycol) methylether methacrylate (PEGMA) on LDPE films via atmospheric pressure non-thermal plasma (APNTP) to enrich their biocompatibility. The influence of the discharge potential and the deposition time on the changes in surface properties of plasma polymerized PEGMA films has been studied through X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), static contact angle (CA) measurements and atomic force microscopy (AFM). An increase in surface hydrophilicity, surface free energy and roughness was observed after the deposition of the PEGMA-based films. It was found that the higher concentration of characteristic ether groups (CO) are incorporated on the surface of PEGMA films deposited at higher discharge potentials and deposition time, as confirmed by XPS analysis. Increasing the discharge potential and deposition time were responsible for substantial changes in surface chemical composition, topography and film thickness. Finally, in-vitro analysis was used to examine the alterations in antifouling efficiency and cytocompatibility of the plasma polymerized PEGMA films. Films deposited at a discharge potential of 14 kV for 5 min were found to give the highest antifouling efficiency and cell viability, when compared to the films deposited at other discharge potentials and deposition times. Thus, by choosing suitable plasma parameters, the properties of the deposited films can be tailored to enhance the biocompatible properties of LDPE films.