Embodiments relate to surface treating a substrate, spraying precursor onto the substrate using supercritical carrier fluid, and post-treating the substrate sprayed with the precursor to form a layer with nanometer thickness of material on the substrate. A spraying assembly for spraying the precursor includes one or more spraying modules and one or more radical injectors at one or more sides of the spraying module. A differential spread mechanism is provided between the spraying module and the radical injectors to inject spread gas that isolates the sprayed precursor and radicals generated by the radical injectors. As relative movement between the substrate and the spraying assembly is made, portions of the substrate is exposed to first radicals, sprayed with precursors either one of the spraying modules or both spraying modules using supercritical carrier fluid, and then exposed to second radicals again.

Methods and apparatus for vapor deposition of an organic film are configured to vaporize an organic reactant at a first temperature, transport the vapor to a reaction chamber housing a substrate, and maintain the substrate at a lower temperature than the vaporization temperature. Alternating contact of the substrate with the organic reactant and a second reactant in a sequential deposition sequence can result in bottom-up filling of voids and trenches with organic film in a manner otherwise difficult to achieve. Deposition reactors conducive to depositing organic films are provided.

Elastic Parylene films produced via chemical vapor deposition polymerization (CVDP) on a substrate are disclosed.

A plurality of polymer slides, each having a polymer part with a first polymer surface portion uncoated and a second surface portion coated with a metal. The first and second surface portions each have different surface coating properties and have respective first and second specified degrees of hydrophobicity which are different from each other. A hydrophobic small molecule is located in the polymer part of each polymer slide, and the hydrophobic small molecule and the polymer are essentially inert to one another. Adjacent polymer slides are arranged in a manner that the first polymer surface of one slide faces a metal coated second surface portion of another slide. The hydrophobic small molecule evaporates from said first polymer surface portion of the polymer part of one polymer slide onto the adjacent metal coated second surface portion of another polymer slide.

Herein discussed is a method of making an object comprising mixing particles with a liquid to form a dispersion; depositing the dispersion on a substrate to form a layer; and treating the layer to cause at least a portion of the particles to sinter, wherein the particles have a size distribution that has at least one of the following characteristics: (a) said size distribution comprises D10 and D90, wherein 10% of the particles have a diameter no greater than D10 and 90% of the particles have a diameter no greater than D90, wherein D90/D10 is in the range of from 1.5 to 100; or (b) said size distribution is bimodal such that the average particle size in the first mode is at least 5 times the average particle size in the second mode; or (c) said size distribution comprises D50, wherein 50% of the particles have a diameter no greater than D50, wherein D50 is no greater than 100 nm.

Methods and apparatus for selectively depositing a layer atop a substrate having a metal surface and a dielectric surface is disclosed, including: (a) contacting the metal surface with one or more metal halides such as metal chlorides or metal fluorides to form an exposed metal surface; (b) growing an organosilane based self-assembled monolayer atop the dielectric surface; and (c) selectively depositing a layer atop the exposed metal surface of the substrate, wherein the organosilane based self-assembled monolayer inhibits deposition of the layer atop the dielectric surface.

Embodiments relate to forming a thin film of nanoscale thickness by depositing a mixture of a precursor and a supercritical fluid onto a surface of a substrate and removing the supercritical fluid from the surface of the substrate. The mixture is sprayed onto the surface by a spraying module. A layer of the precursor is formed on at least a portion of the surface. Molecules of the supercritical fluid is removed from the surface. The surface is exposed to plasma radical to transform the layer of the precursor into a solid thin film. In some embodiments, molecules of the precursor chemically bond with molecules of the supercritical fluid in the mixture. The molecules of the supercritical fluid can be decoupled from the molecules of the precursor before the layer of the precursor is formed.

In one embodiment, an electroactive material includes a piezoelectric polymer substrate and a conducting polymer coating provided on the substrate.

A reflection-reducing layer system is disclosed. In an embodiment, the system includes a refractive index gradient layer including an inorganic material and an organic material in a spatially varying composition, wherein the refractive index gradient layer has a refractive index which decreases in a growth direction and an organic layer arranged above the refractive index gradient layer, the organic layer having a surface including a nanostructure.

The present invention relates to a method for coating a substrate comprising the following steps: a) depositing a polymerizable composition on said substrate, the composition being selected from the following compositions: a composition (A) containing, as an essential component: a least one epoxy monomer (i) and/or at least one silicone epoxy monomer (ii); or a composition (B) containing as an essential component a least one silicone epoxy monomer (ii) and at least one monomer containing at least one ethylenic unsaturation (iii); b) polymerizing said composition by plasma treatment. The coating obtained with this method is substantially free from ionic photocatalysts, and the step (b) is carried out at atmospheric pressure.