Microarray technology has accelerated the rate of biomolecular research by enabling an enormous number of experiments to be conducted in parallel. This is achieved by immobilizing arrays of probe biomolecules, such as oligonucleotides or proteins, in picomole quantities onto a substrate. The attachment of these probes requires chemically functionalizing the surface. This is a critical step in microarray fabrication and plays a significant role in their functional performance. Plasma surface functionalization reduces the complexity of wet chemical treatments, controlling surface cleanliness, functional chemistry and hydrophobicity in a single, automated process step.
