Polyimides

Describes the chemistry, production, properties and applications of polymides. Written by an international group of scientists and technologists from the USA, Europe and Japan, this text will be a source of reference for materials scientists and polymer technologists.

Polyimides have been available commercially for over 25 years, but are still frequently thought of as new materials, due largely to their performance and high technology end uses, which ensure that levels of research and development remain high. This detailed review describes the synthesis, properties, processing and applications of condensation, addition and hybrid polyimides. An additional indexed section containing several hundred abstracts from the Rapra Polymer Library database provides useful references for further reading.

Provides coverage on the full range of topics associated with polyimides, including structure, polymer fundamentals, and product areas. The text addresses both basic and applied aspects of the subject. It details the synthesis of polyimides, polyamideimides, and flourinated polyimides, explains the molecular design of photosensitive polyimides, and more.

The topics covered in this proceedings volume include: Synthesis, characterization and processing (including some novel approaches) of a variety of polyimides and other high temperature polymers; structure-property relationships; segmental dynamics in polyimide materials; photoalignable polyimides; photoconductivity and photosensitivity of polyimides; ultrafiltration membranes from polyetherimide; polymer materials for nonlinear optical applications; alignment of SWNTs in rigid-rod polymer compositions; surface modification of polyimide; adhesion of Cu to polyimide surfaces; and polyimide erosion in a low Earth orbit space environment.

This is the first book to provide an in-depth presentation of photosensitive polyimides for electronic and photonic applications. The authors are leading specialists in this field from Japan, Europe and the U.S. From the Preface Aromatic polyimides were developed originally as thermostable flexible polymer films for space applications. Now polyimides have found widespread use in the manufacture of electronic devices and have been employed in increasingly diverse areas of electronics and information technology. In addition to their excellent thermal stability and high processability, a wide range of chemical and physical properties provided by molecular engineering makes polyimides highly versatile in the electronics and information industries. Lithography of polyimides is an inevitable process in using polyimides for microelectronic fields, and hence increasing research has been devoted to developing photosensitive polyimides, which make it unnecessary to use photoresists for patterning polyimides and diminishing markedly the number of steps in fabrication of various electronic devices. In addition, the development of technology of photosensitive polyimides is expected to play a great role in manufacturing photonic devices in the near future, when the design and control of hyper fine structures . . . including higher thermal stability and better processability would be essential.

Polyimides are a new generation of polymers that exhibit excellent mechanical, thermal, chemical, and electrical properties. Hence, they are highly reliable with little change in physical properties over a long time. They are currently used for practical applications in aerospace, energy, automotive, and electronics industries. This book presents a comprehensive overview of polyimides, including their properties, synthesis, and applications, as well as future research directions and challenges.

Polyimides are very durable, easy to machine and have exceptional heat and chemical resistance. They are also highly insulative and do not contaminate their surroundings. Their strength and heat and chemical resistance are so great that they are often used to replace glass and metals, such as steel, in many demanding industrial applications. Polyimides are even used in many everyday applications. They are used in cars both externally and internally because they can withstand the intense heat and the corrosive lubricants, fuels, and coolants found in cars. They are also used in the construction.

The feature of polyimides and other heterocyclic polymers are now well-established and used for long term temperature durability in the range of 250 - 350'C. This book will review synthesis, mechanisms, ultimate properties, physico-chemical properties, processing and applications of such high performance materials needed in advanced technologies. It presents interdisciplinary papers on the state of knowledge of each topic under consideration through a combination of overviews and original unpublished research. The volume contains eleven chapters divided into three sections: Chemistry; Chemical and Physical Properties; and Applications.