Ultrasonic vibration assisted laser (UVAL) treatment of copper for superhydrophobicity

Abstract In this paper, a hybrid ultrasonic vibration assisted laser (UVAL) prepared copper surface of super-hydrophobic was reported. After UVAL treatment, the water contact angle (WCA) of copper surface to 3 μL water was 157.4°and the water slip angle (WSA) was less than 10°. The wettability, microstructure, chemical composition and durability of copper surface were measured by contact angle measuring instrument, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), surface predatory X-ray diffraction (XRD) and three-dimensional morphology. The results revealed that after UVAL treatment, the microcoral-like structure and nano-grass structure were formed on the surface of the sample, which were similar to the surface of lotus leaf. Ultrasonic vibration combined with laser treatment can accelerate the adsorption of airborne hydrocarbon contaminations on the surface of micro and nanostructures, and reduce the surface energy of copper particles on the surface. This study provides a fast, convenient and effective method for the rapid preparation of stable superhydrophobic copper surface.