The effects of surface treatment of polymers is important in many areas of technology. Polymer surfaces may be treated for a variety of reasons including: increased wettability for printing; improved fiber bonding in composites; and improved bonding in powder sintering. A variety of techniques are used to study surface changes after treatments including hydrophobicity, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Another technique which has good potential for surface characterization is the effect of surface treatment on the crossover voltage, “E2,” in low voltage SEM. E2 is the accelerating voltage at which there is 0 potential on surface of an insulator because the electron emission current is equal to the primary beam current. We have previously demonstrated that changes in E2 are correlated to changes in hydrophobicity. These results also correlated well with XPS and weight loss measurements. In this research we are reporting on the effects of surface roughness, chemical treatment and electrical discharges on changes in E2 for teflon (polytetrafluoroethylene).