The energetics of the epitaxial deposition of polyethylene onto the basal plane (0001) of graphite

Polymer‐substrate interaction energetics have been determined in order to describe the epitaxial deposition of polyethylene into graphite. The potential energy was calculated using van der Waal's interactions. A closed‐form representation of the potential was derived for a substrate which was considered infinite in planar area. Inspection of the relative polymer‐substrate energies for various positions above the substrate indicate a planar‐zigzag polyethylene chain segment deposits with its backbone parallel to the substrate. The chain axis preferentially orients in the (1120) directions of the graphite surface layer. Specifically, deposition occurs along the lines which intersect the nearest‐neighbor midpoints of the CC bonds in the surface layer.