The molecular organization in ultrathin polymer films (thicknesses les
s than 1000 angstroms) and thin polymer films (thicknesses between 100
0 and 10,000 angstroms) may differ substantially from that of bulk pol
ymers, which can lead to important differences in resulting thermophys
ical properties, Such constrained geometry films have been fabricated
from amorphous poly(3-methyl-4-hydroxy styrene) (PMHS) and semicrystal
line poly(di-n-hexyl silane) (PD6S) by means of spin-casting. The resi
dual solvent content is substantially greater in ultrathin PMHS films,
which suggests a higher glass transition temperature that results fro
m a stronger hydrogen-bonded network as compared with that in thicker
films. Crystallization of PD6S is substantially hindered in ultrathin
films, in which a critical thickness of 150 angstroms is needed for cr
ystalline morphology to exist and in which the rate of crystallization
is initially slow but increases rapidly as the film approaches 500 an
gstroms in thickness.