Influence of the polymer pre-treatment before its electroless metallization

In order to activate polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) surfaces, a mixed Pd-Sn colloidal solution is used for further copper deposition. The plasma pre-treatment is performed using N2 or N2/H2 reactive gases. The conditions to prepare the colloidal solution like reaction temperature and growth time of colloids as well as the plasma processing conditions are studied in order to establish the elaboration and treatment parameters that allow obtaining the highest concentration of metallic palladium and also the good adhesion of copper onto the PVDF surface. This study is essentially supported by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) analysis.