laser-micromachining-for-polymer-surface-topography-design

Laser Micromachining for Polymer Surface Topography Design

Soft magnetoactive elastomers (MAEs) are smart materials that respond to external magnetic fields by dynamically altering their mechanical properties. ...

Ostbayerische Technische Hochschule Regensburg

Transient rheological response of magnetoactive elastomers is experimentally studied using dynamic torsion at a fixed oscillation frequency in temporally stepwise changing magnetic fields and oscillation amplitudes. For step magnetic-field excitations, at least three exponential functions are required to reasonably describe the time behavior of the storage shear modulus over long time scales (>10(3) s). The deduced characteristic time constants of the corresponding rearrangement processes of the filler network differ approximately by one order of magnitude: τ1 ≲ 10(1) s, τ2 ∼ 10(2) s, and τ3 ∼ 10(3) s. The sudden imposition of the external magnetic field activates a very fast rearrangement process with the characteristic time under 10 s, which cannot be determined more precisely due to the measurement conditions. Even more peculiar transient behavior has been observed during pyramid excitations, when either the external magnetic field was first stepwise increased and then decreased in a staircase manner at a fixed strain amplitude γ or the strain amplitude γ was first stepwise increased and then decreased in a staircase manner at a fixed magnetic field. In particular, the so-called "cross-over effect" has been identified in both dynamical loading programs. This cross-over effect seems to be promoted by the application of the external magnetic field. The experimental results are discussed in the context of the specific rearrangement of the magnetic filler network under the simultaneous action of the external magnetic field and shear deformation. Striking similarities of the observed phenomena to the structural relaxation processes in glassy materials and to the jamming transition of granular materials are pointed out. The obtained results are important for fundamental understanding of material behavior in magnetic fields as well as for the development of devices on the basis of magnetoactive elastomeric materials.

Transient magnetorheological response of magnetoactive elastomers to step and pyramid excitations.

Magnetoactive elastomers (MAEs) are composite materials comprised of micrometer-sized ferromagnetic particles in a nonmagnetic elastomer matrix. A single-particle mechanism of magnetostriction in MAEs, assuming the rotation of a soft magnetic, mechanically rigid particle with uniaxial magnetic anisotropy in magnetic fields is identified and considered theoretically within the framework of an alternative model. In this mechanism, the total magnetic anisotropy energy of the filling particles in the matrix is the sum over single particles. Matrix displacements in the vicinity of the particle and the resulting direction of the magnetization vector are calculated. The effect of matrix deformation is pronounced well if the magnetic anisotropy coefficient K is much larger than the shear modulus µ of the elastic matrix. The feasibility of the proposed magnetostriction mechanism in soft magnetoactive elastomers and gels is elucidated. The magnetic-field-induced internal stresses in the matrix lead to effects of magnetodeformation and may increase the elastic moduli of these composite materials.

Single-particle mechanism of magnetostriction in magnetoactive elastomers.

The influence of an external magnetic field on the static shear strain and the effective shear modulus of a magnetoactive elastomer (MAE) is studied theoretically in the framework of a recently introduced approach to the single-particle magnetostriction mechanism [V. M. Kalita et al., Phys. Rev. E 93, 062503 (2016)10.1103/PhysRevE.93.062503]. The planar problem of magnetostriction in an MAE with magnetically soft inclusions in the form of a thin disk (platelet) having the magnetic anisotropy in the plane of this disk is solved analytically. An external magnetic field acts with torques on magnetic filler particles, creates mechanical stresses in the vicinity of inclusions, induces shear strain, and increases the effective shear modulus of these composite materials. It is shown that the largest effect of the magnetic field on the effective shear modulus should be expected in MAEs with soft elastomer matrices, where the shear modulus of the matrix is less than the magnetic anisotropy constant of inclusions. It is derived that the effective shear modulus is nonlinearly dependent on the external magnetic field and approaches the saturation value in magnetic fields exceeding the field of particle anisotropy. It is shown that model calculations of the effective shear modulus correspond to a phenomenological definition of effective elastic moduli and magnetoelastic coupling constants. The obtained theoretical results compare well with known experimental data. Determination of effective elastic coefficients in MAEs and their dependence on magnetic field is discussed. The concentration dependence of the effective shear modulus at higher filler concentrations has been estimated using the method of Padé approximants, which predicts that both the absolute and relative changes of the magnetic-field-dependent effective shear modulus will significantly increase with the growing concentration of filler particles.

Effect of single-particle magnetostriction on the shear modulus of compliant magnetoactive elastomers.

The dynamic shear modulus of magnetoactive elastomers containing 70 and 80 mass % of carbonyl iron microparticles is measured as a function of strain amplitude via dynamic torsion oscillations in various magnetic fields. The results are presented in terms of the mechanical energy density and considered in the framework of the conventional Kraus model. The form exponent of the Kraus model is further related to a physical model of Huber et al. [Huber et al., J. Phys.: Condens. Matter 8, 409 (1996)10.1088/0953-8984/8/29/003] that uses a realistic representation for the cluster network possessing fractal structure. Two mechanical loading regimes are identified. At small strain amplitudes the exponent β of the Kraus model changes in an externally applied magnetic field due to rearrangement of ferromagnetic-filler particles, while at large strain amplitudes, the exponent β seems to be independent of the magnetic field. The critical mechanical energy characterizing the transition between these two regimes grows with the increasing magnetic field. Similarities between agglomeration and deagglomeration of magnetic filler under simultaneously applied magnetic field and mechanical shear and the concept of jamming transition are discussed. It is proposed that the magnetic field should be considered as an additional parameter to the jamming phase diagram of rubbers filled with magnetic particles.

Magnetorheological response of highly filled magnetoactive elastomers from perspective of mechanical energy density: Fractal aggregates above the nanometer scale?

The dependence of the resonant direct magnetoelectric effect on temperature is studied experimentally in planar composite structures. Samples of rectangular shapes with dimensions of 5 mm × 20 mm employed ferromagnetic layers of either an amorphous (metallic glass) alloy or nickel with a thickness of 20-200 μm and piezoelectric layers of single crystalline langatate material or lead zirconate titanate piezoelectric ceramics with a thickness of 500 μm. The temperature of the samples was varied in a range between 120 and 390 K by blowing a gaseous nitrogen stream around them. It is shown that the effective characteristics of the magnetoelectric effect-such as the mechanical resonance frequency , the quality factor  and the magnitude of the magnetoelectric coefficient  at the resonance frequency-are contingent on temperature. The interrelations between the temperature changes of the characteristics of the magnetoelectric effect and the temperature variations of the following material parameters-Young's modulus , the acoustic quality factor of individual layers, the dielectric constant , the piezoelectric modulus  of the piezoelectric layer as well as the piezomagnetic coefficients  of the ferromagnetic layer-are established. The effect of temperature on the characteristics of the nonlinear magnetoelectric effect is observed for the first time. The results can be useful for designing magnetoelectric heterostructures with specified temperature characteristics, in particular, for the development of thermally stabilized magnetoelectric devices.

Temperature Dependence of the Resonant Magnetoelectric Effect in Layered Heterostructures.

It is shown that the critical exponent for the effective shear modulus of a composite medium where a compliant polymer matrix is filled with ferromagnetic particles may significantly depend on the external magnetic field. The physical consequence of this dependence is the critical behavior of the relative magnetorheological effect.

Renormalization of the critical exponent for the shear modulus of magnetoactive elastomers.

We investigated magnetic-field-induced modifications of the surface roughness of magnetoactive elastomers (MAEs) with four material compositions incorporating two concentrations of ferromagnetic microparticles (70 wt% and 80 wt%) and exhibiting two shear storage moduli of the resulting composite material (about 10 kPa and 30 kPa). The analysis was primarily based on spread optical reflection measurements. The surfaces of all four materials were found to be very smooth in the absence of magnetic field (RMS roughness below 50 nm). A maximal field-induced roughness modification (approximately 1 μm/T) was observed for the softer material with the lower filler concentration, and a minimal modification (less than 50 nm/T) was observed for the harder material with the higher filler concentration. All four materials showed a significant decrease in the total optical reflectivity with an increasing magnetic field as well. This effect is attributed to the existence of a distinct surface layer that is depleted of microparticles in the absence of a magnetic field but becomes filled with particles in the presence of the field. We analyzed the temporal response of the reflective properties to the switching on and off of the magnetic field and found switching-on response times of around 0.1 s and switching-off response times in the range of 0.3⁻0.6 s. These observations provide new insight into the magnetic-field-induced surface restructuring of MAEs and may be useful for the development of magnetically reconfigurable elastomeric optical surfaces.

Effect of Material Composition on Tunable Surface Roughness of Magnetoactive Elastomers.

The magnetodielectric response of magnetoactive elastomers (MAEs) in its dependence on filler concentration, magnetic field, and test frequency is studied experimentally. MAEs are synthesized on the basis of a silicone matrix filled with spherical carbonyl iron particles characterized by a mean diameter of 4.5 µm. The concentration of the magnetic filler within composite materials is equal to 70, 75, and 80 mass%. The effective lossless permittivity ε' as well as the dielectric loss tanδ grow significantly when the magnetic field increases. The permittivity increases and the dielectric loss decreases with increasing filler concentration. In the measurement frequency range between 1 kHz and 200 kHz, the frequency hardly affects the values of ε' and tanδ in the absence of a magnetic field. However, both parameters decrease considerably with the growing frequency in a constant magnetic field. The more strongly the magnetic field is applied, the larger the change in permittivity and loss tangent at the same test frequency is observed. An equivalent circuit formulation qualitatively describes the main tendencies of the magnetodielectric response.

Magnetodielectric Response of Soft Magnetoactive Elastomers: Effects of Filler Concentration and Measurement Frequency.

The direct magnetoelectric (ME) effect is investigated in a planar structure comprising mechanically coupled layers of a magnetostrictive fibrous composite (MFC) and a piezoelectric ceramics (lead zirconate titanate, PZT). The MFC is an array of Ni-wires with a diameter of 200 μm that are aligned parallel to each other in a single layer. The wires are separated by a distance of 250 or 500 μm and fixed in a polyamide matrix. The structure was placed in a tangential constant field  and was excited by an alternating magnetic field  parallel to , while the voltage generated by the PZT layer was measured. The resulting field dependences of the magnetization () and the magnetostriction () were determined by the orientation of the field  in the plane of the structure and the distance between the Ni-wires. The ME coupling coefficient of the structure decreased from 4.8 to 0.25 V/A when the orientation of  was changed from parallel to perpendicular to Ni-wires. With an increase in the excitation field amplitude , a nonlinear ME effect in the output voltage, namely frequency doubling, was observed. The frequency and field dependences of the efficiency of the ME transduction in the MFC-piezoelectric heterostructure are well described by the existing theory.

Anisotropic Magnetoelectric Effect in a Planar Heterostructure Comprising Piezoelectric Ceramics and Magnetostrictive Fibrous Composite.

In primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG), a neurodegenerative disease of the optic nerve (ON) and leading cause of blindness, the optic nerve head (ONH) undergoes marked structural extracellular matrix (ECM) changes, which contribute to its permanent deformation and to degeneration of ON axons. The remodeling process of the ECM causes changes in the biomechanical properties of the ONH and the peripapillary sclera, which is accompanied by an increased reactivity of the resident astrocytes. The molecular factors involved in the remodeling process belong to the Transforming growth factor (TGF)-β superfamily, especially TGF-β2. In previous publications we showed that TGF-β2 induced ECM alterations are mediated by Cellular Communication Network Factor (CCN)2/Connective Tissue Growth Factor (CTGF) and recently we showed that CCN2/CTGF is expressed by astrocytes of the ON under normal conditions. In this study we wanted to get a better understanding of the function of CCN2/CTGF under normal and pathologic conditions. To this end, we analyzed the glial lamina and peripapillary sclera of CCN2/CTGF overexpressing mice and studied the effect of CCN2/CTGF and increasing substratum stiffness on murine ON astrocytes . We observed enhanced astrocyte reactivity in the ONH, increased ECM protein synthesis in the peripapillary sclera and increased  expression in the ONH during the pathologic development . CCN2/CTGF treatment of primary murine ON astrocytes induced a higher migration rate, and increase of ECM proteins including fibronectin, elastin and collagen type III. Furthermore, the astrocytes responded to stiffer substratum with increased glial fibrillary acidic protein, vimentin, actin and CCN2/CTGF synthesis. Finally, we observed the reinforced appearance of CCN2/CTGF in the lamina cribrosa of glaucomatous patients. We conclude that reactive changes in ONH astrocytes, induced by the altered biomechanical characteristics of the region, give rise to a self-amplifying process that includes increased TGF-β2/CCN2/CTGF signaling and leads to the synthesis of ECM molecules and cytoskeleton proteins, a process that in turn augments the stiffness at the ONH. Such a scenario may finally result in a vicious circle in the pathogenesis of POAG. The transgenic CTGF-overexpressing mouse model might be an optimal model to study the chronic pathological POAG changes in the ONH.

CCN2/CTGF-A Modulator of the Optic Nerve Head Astrocyte.

Stimuli responsive materials are key ingredients for any application that requires dynamically tunable or on-demand responses. In this work we report experimental and theoretical investigation of magnetic-field driven modifications of soft-magnetic elastomers whose surface was processed by laser ablation into lamellar microstructures that can be manipulated by a uniform magnetic field. We present a minimal hybrid model that elucidates the associated deflection process of the lamellae and explains the lamellar structure frustration in terms of dipolar magnetic forces arising from the neighbouring lamellae. We experimentally determine the magnitude of the deflection as a function of magnetic flux density and explore the dynamic response of lamellae to fast changes in a magnetic field. A relationship between the deflection of lamellae and modifications of the optical reflectance of the lamellar structures is resolved.

Dynamically tunable lamellar surface structures from magnetoactive elastomers driven by a uniform magnetic field.

It has been recently demonstrated that laser micromachining of magnetoactive elastomers is a very convenient method for fabricating dynamic surface microstructures with magnetically tunable properties, such as wettability and surface reflectivity. In this study, we investigate the impact of the micromachining process on the fabricated material's structural properties and its chemical composition. By employing scanning electron microscopy, we investigate changes in size distribution and spatial arrangement of carbonyl iron microparticles dispersed in the polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) matrix as a function of laser irradiation. Based on the images obtained by a low vacuum secondary electron detector, we analyze modifications of the surface topography. The results show that most profound modifications occur during the low-exposure (8 J/cm) treatment of the surface with the laser beam. Our findings provide important insights for developing theoretical models of functional properties of laser-sculptured microstructures from magnetoactive elastomers.

Surface Modification of Magnetoactive Elastomers by Laser Micromachining.

The presence of a wetting ridge is crucial for many wetting phenomena on soft substrates. Conventional experimental observations of a wetting ridge require permanent presence of a droplet. The magnetic field-induced plasticity effect (FIPE) of soft magnetoative elastomers (MAEs) allows one to overcome this limitation. Depositing a droplet onto an MAE surface and applying a magnetic field fixes the wetting ridge in place due to the FIPE. The droplet can be removed to investigate the ridge with ease using conventional optical methods.

Article	Year
Transient magnetorheological response of magnetoactive elastomers to step and pyramid excitations. Soft matter\| PubMed ID: 26882044	2016
Single-particle mechanism of magnetostriction in magnetoactive elastomers. Physical review. E\| PubMed ID: 27415313	2016
Effect of single-particle magnetostriction on the shear modulus of compliant magnetoactive elastomers. Physical review. E\| PubMed ID: 28415257	2017
Magnetorheological response of highly filled magnetoactive elastomers from perspective of mechanical energy density: Fractal aggregates above the nanometer scale? Physical review. E\| PubMed ID: 28709252	2017
Temperature Dependence of the Resonant Magnetoelectric Effect in Layered Heterostructures. Materials (Basel, Switzerland)\| PubMed ID: 29035312	2017
Renormalization of the critical exponent for the shear modulus of magnetoactive elastomers. Scientific reports\| PubMed ID: 29535338	2018
Effect of Material Composition on Tunable Surface Roughness of Magnetoactive Elastomers. Polymers\| PubMed ID: 30960578	2019
Magnetodielectric Response of Soft Magnetoactive Elastomers: Effects of Filler Concentration and Measurement Frequency. International journal of molecular sciences\| PubMed ID: 31067642	2019
Anisotropic Magnetoelectric Effect in a Planar Heterostructure Comprising Piezoelectric Ceramics and Magnetostrictive Fibrous Composite. Materials (Basel, Switzerland)\| PubMed ID: 31581633	2019
CCN2/CTGF-A Modulator of the Optic Nerve Head Astrocyte. Frontiers in cell and developmental biology\| PubMed ID: 35493079	2022
Dynamically tunable lamellar surface structures from magnetoactive elastomers driven by a uniform magnetic field. Soft matter\| PubMed ID: 37097616	2023
Surface Modification of Magnetoactive Elastomers by Laser Micromachining. Materials (Basel, Switzerland)\| PubMed ID: 38612065	2024
Preservation of wetting ridges using field-induced plasticity of magnetoactive elastomers. Journal of colloid and interface science\| PubMed ID: 39721074	2025

Mikhail Shamonin

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