Surface modification of ETFE surfaces by remote H2, O2 and Ar plasmas were investigated from the viewpoint of selective modification of CH2-CH2 or CF2-CF2 component. The remote H2 and Ar plasmas modified effectively ETFE surfaces into hydrophilic, but the remote O2 plasma did not. The remote H2 plasma interacted with CF2 component rather than CH2 component in ETFE. The remote O2 plasma interacted with CH2 component as well as CF2 component in ETFE chains. © 2003 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.