Adhesion Improvement via Surface Functionalization of Epoxy‐Resin Base Post by Low Temperature Plasma

Summary The adhesion between dental materials could be improved by an increase of interfacial polarity. In this study, low temperature plasma was used to treat an epoxy‐based post. The surface modifications after treatment were characterized by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) which showed the existence of N, O‐ containing groups in the epoxy‐based post. Furthermore, functionalization positions were proposed by Quantum Mechanic (QM) calculation. It could confirm the position that such a functional group was formed at hydroxyl group and alpha‐carbon with an energy level around 93–97 kcal/mol through hydrogen abstraction reaction. Both experiments and calculations show consistent results indicating polar group formation on the surface after plasma treatments.