EUV micropatterning for biocompatibility control of PET

We have investigated the influence of oriented microstructures at modified polyethylene terephthalate (PET) on the adhesion and alignment of Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells. For surface modification, the PET foils were exposed to the radiation of a laser-plasma extreme ultraviolet (EUV) source based on a double-stream gas-puff target. The emission of the plasma was focused onto the samples by means of a gold-plated ellipsoidal collector. The spectrum of the focused radiation covered the wavelength range from 9 to 70 nm. The PET samples were irradiated with the EUV pulses at a repetition rate of 10 Hz in a high vacuum. For control experiments, PET samples were also irradiated in air with the light of a 193 nm ArF-excimer laser. Different kinds of surface microstructures were obtained depending on the EUV or laser fluence and pulse number, including oriented wall- and ripple-type structures with lateral structure periods of a few A mu m. The surface morphology of polymer samples after the irradiation was investigated using a scanning electron microscope (SEM). Changes in chemical surface structure of the irradiated samples were investigated using X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). We demonstrated that the cells show good adhesion and align along oriented wall- and ripple-type microstructures on PET surfaces produced by the EUV irradiation.