Polystyrene Surface Modification for Localized Cell Culture Using a Capillary Dielectric Barrier Discharge Atmospheric‐Pressure Microplasma Jet

This paper reports the spatially resolved surface modification of polystyrene (PS) using an atmospheric‐pressure microplasma jet. Treatment of PS surfaces using a microplasma jet with a 100 µm diameter is investigated using contact angle, XPS, AFM and lens epithelial cell (LEC) growth. Microplasma jet treatment creates a defined reduction in contact angle of approximately 60° in a circular pattern with a diameter of 1.5 mm or more. Spatially resolved XPS analysis demonstrates that a reduction in contact angle is related to an increase in O1s peak intensity. AFM confirms that microplasma jet treatment causes no significant change in surface roughness. LECs are confined to a treated area.