Nanoconfinement Effects on Intermolecular Forces Observed via Dewetting

TL;DR

This study demonstrates that nanoconfinement significantly alters intermolecular forces in thin films, affecting stability and dewetting behavior, and introduces a modified theoretical model to predict these effects.

Contribution

The paper introduces a modified theoretical framework incorporating nanoconfinement effects into the Hamaker constant, improving predictions of film stability in multilayer systems.

Findings

Dewetting behavior varies with underlying layer thickness.

Nanoconfinement alters refractive index and intermolecular forces.

Modified model accurately predicts experimental observations.

Abstract

Although wettability is a macroscopic manifestation of molecular-level forces, such as van der Waals (vdW) forces, the impact of nanoconfinement on material properties in reduced film thickness remains unexplored in predicting film stability. In this work, we investigate how nanoconfinement influences intermolecular interactions using a model trilayer system composed of a thick polystyrene (PS) base, a poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) middle layer with tunable thickness (15-95 nm), and a 10 nm top PS film. We find that the dewetting behavior of the top PS layer is highly sensitive to middle PMMA thickness, deviating from classical vdW-based predictions that assume bulk material properties. By incorporating nanoconfinement-induced changes in PMMA refractive index into the calculation of the Hamaker constant, we present a modified theoretical framework that successfully captures the observed behavior. This study links dewetting behavior and material property change as a function of underlayer thickness, providing direct evidence that nanoconfinement in soft matter systems significantly influences long-range intermolecular interactions. We show that film stability can be tuned solely by adjusting underlying layer thickness, while preserving both chemistry and thickness of top functional film. This finding carries broad implications for thin-film technologies across scientific and engineering disciplines by enabling performance-targeted interface design.