Cart
0
0 TWD
[surface treatment] About Plasma
22/04/2026
In the early days of modern life, the word "plasma" was sometimes heard, and it might have brought to mind plasma TVs. However, these were superseded by OLED and other products due to their high power consumption, heat generation, and short lifespan. Beyond products, however, plasma has a wide range of applications, such as semiconductor micro-etching and thin-film deposition, workpiece surface cleaning, medical aesthetics, and lighting and display technologies.
Plasma is an electrically neutral substance composed of various particles with different properties, including cations, neutral particles, and free electrons. The anions (free electrons) and cations have equal charges, which is what physics refers to as "plasma." It is the fourth state of matter besides solid, liquid, and gas, possessing high energy and conductivity.
Application areas
1. Daily Life and Lighting
Lighting: Fluorescent tubes contain plasma; current passing through the gas produces an ionized glow discharge.
Special Applications: Plasma cutting, environmental waste disposal, and common plasma ball toys.
2.Medical and Biotechnology
Medical Sterilization: Low-temperature plasma can penetrate bacterial cell walls, rapidly eliminating bacteria and viruses at low temperatures.
Medical Aesthetics: Applied to micro-skin remodeling, such as wrinkle removal and stimulating collagen regeneration.
3. Surface Treatment and Industrial Cleaning
Surface Cleaning: Plasma effectively decomposes organic contaminants (such as grease and mold release agents) on plastic, metal, and glass surfaces, achieving high and uniform results.
Surface Activation: Improves the wettability of material surfaces (converting hydrophobic to hydrophilic), significantly enhancing the adhesion of coatings, bonds, and prints.
4.Semiconductor and Microelectronics Industry
Dry Etching: Utilizing ions in plasma to bombard the wafer, creating nanometer-scale fine circuit grooves, more precise than traditional wet etching.
Thin Film Deposition: Depositing insulating or conductive layers on the wafer surface (e.g., plasma-assisted chemical vapor deposition).
Ion Implantation: Injecting impurity ions into the semiconductor to alter its conductivity.
Working principle
Since we are discussing surface treatment, we will use metallic materials as an example and introduce chemical cleaning methods to understand the differences.
Plasma Cleaning:
Physical Action: Ions in the plasma bombard the metal surface with high energy, breaking down organic contaminants and ejecting them.
Chemical Action: Free radicals generated by reactive gases react chemically with the organic contaminants, producing carbon oxides and other substances, which are then removed via a vacuum system.
Surface Activation: While removing organic contaminants, molecular bonds are broken to generate functional groups, changing the surface from hydrophobic to hydrophilic, facilitating subsequent surface treatment.
Chemical Cleaning:
Saponification: Alkaline degreasers react chemically with grease to produce sodium stearate and glycerin.
Emulsification: Surfactants reduce the interfacial tension between oil and water, dispersing water-insoluble oil contaminants into tiny oil droplets to form a stable emulsion. The surfactants then carry the oil contaminants away from the metal surface.
Wetting and Penetration: The surfactants in the cleaning agent can wet the metal surface and improve the cleanliness of the metal surface.
Future Outlook
The future development of plasma technology focuses on green environmental protection, high-precision manufacturing, and cutting-edge medical applications, particularly in combining AI prediction technology to optimize free radical intensity. Its main application trends include: achieving subfab decarbonization and energy conservation in the semiconductor industry; applying atmospheric plasma technology to circular agriculture; and utilizing cryogenic plasma for clinical wound sterilization and other biomedical technologies.