Perpendicular orientation control in thin films of POSS-containing block copolymer domains with a top-coat surface treatment

Three types of bottom surface layers (BSLs-A, B, C) with different surface properties and a top-coat (TC-A) were applied to investigate perpendicular orientation control of PMMA-b-PMAPOSS domains in the thin films with thermal annealing. The combination of BSL-A and TC-A yielded perpendicular cylinders after annealing at 180 °C for 60 min, whereas the other combinations produced parallel cylinders. Water contact angles and surface free energies (SFEs) of the BSLs were evaluated for the perpendicular orientation. It was found that the SFEs were more effectual indicators than the water contact angles.