Degradable plasma polymer films with tailored hydrolysis behavior

Abstract Thin films based on polylactic acid have been prepared using plasma-assisted vacuum thermal deposition under varying RF glow discharge power and characterized in terms of chemical composition and structural homogeneity. As a measure of the degradability of the films their wash-off and hydrolysis behavior were monitored. The properties of the films were found to be tunable to a significant degree by the deposition conditions.