Patent ID: 7186482

Claim:
An imageable element comprising: a substrate; an underlayer over the substrate; and a top layer over the underlayer; in which: the element comprises a photothermal conversion material; the top layer is substantially free of the photothermal conversion material; the top layer is ink receptive; before thermal imaging, the top layer is not removable by an alkaline developer; after thermal imaging to form imaged regions in the top layer, the imaged regions are removable by the alkaline developer; the underlayer is removable by the alkaline developer, and the underlayer comprises a polymeric material that comprises, in polymerized form: from about 5 mol % to about 30 mol % of recurring units derived from an ethylenically unsaturated polymerizable monomer comprising a carboxy group, from about 20 mol % to about 75 mol % of recurring units derived from N-phenylmaleimide, N-cyclohexylmaleimide, N-benzylmaleimide, or a mixture thereof, from about 3 mol % to about 50 mol % of recurring units derived from a compound (a), represented by the formula: CH 2 ═C(R 2 )—C(O)—NH—CH 2 —OR 1 , in which R 1 is C 1 to C 12 alkyl, phenyl, C 1 to C 12 substituted phenyl, C 1 to C 12 aralkyl, or Si(CH 3 ) 3 ; and R 2 is hydrogen or methyl, and optionally from about 5 mol % to about 50 mol % of recurring units derived from methacrylamide.