Effect of the cure temperature on the morphology of a cyanate ester resin modified with a thermoplastic: characterization by atomic force microscopy

A bisphenol A dicyanate (DCBA) resin has been modified with bisphenol-A polysulfone (PSU) at a concentration of 15 wt%. Mixtures, postcured at the same conditions, have been precured at different temperatures. The effect of the curing temperature on the morphology has been studied by Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM). In the present study, we have also compared Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and AFM in order to demonstrate that AFM is a powerful tool for the characterisation of polymer mixtures morphology.