Investigation of Plasma Etching Rates of a Methacrylate Resin

In this work, the plasma etching rate of UDMA-TEGDMA (urethane-dimethacrylate – triethyleneglycol dimethacrylate) 3:1 resin composite was investigated. Thin layers (between 20–200 um) of this photopolymer were created on glass substrates, then the thickness of the layer was measured with white light interferometry. Subsequently, the samples were exposed to hydrogen, argon, and other gas mixture-based plasmas in a microwave reactor at different conditions (power, pressure, and etching time). After plasma treatment, the thickness of films was measured again, and the etching rate at the various tested experimental conditions was established.