Laser Nanopatterning for Wettability Applications

Abstract

We report on periodic, homogeneous nanoripples fabricated on stainless steel (SS), copper (Cu), and aluminum (Al) substrates using an ytterbium pulsed femtosecond laser. These structures called laser induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS) are processed at a relatively high-speed and over large areas. This paper investigates the effect of LIPSS on a wettability behavior of SS, Cu, and Al surfaces. It is shown that nanoripples significantly influenced the wettability character of these metals turning them from hydrophilic to hydrophobic behavior.