MAGNETRON SPUTTERING ON TITANIUM ALLOY SUBSTRATES OF COPPER FILMS WITH ANTIBACTERIAL PROPERTIES AGAINST PSEUDOMONAS AND STAPHYLOCOCCUS

Abstract

. The article presents a quantitative assessment of the released copper ions and bactericidal properties in relation to Staphylococcus aureus bacteria and Pseudomonas aeruginosa pseudomonads for copper coatings of different thicknesses and Cu-Ti films on Ti-6Al-4V titanium alloy substrates. To obtain coatings, DC magnetron sputtering was used and its parameters were selected in order to obtain Cu- coatings of different thicknesses and a Cu-Ti film of a certain composition.  The thickness and elemental composition of the  coatings were assessed by scanning electron microscopy with EDX, the concentration of copper ions released during 1, 2, 3 and 4 days from Cu films in saline was determined by mass spectrometry. It has been found that the antibacterial l activity of thinner Cu-Ti coatings is higher than that of thicker pure copper coatings. The largest zones of inhibition of P. aeruginosa bacteria (average 28.8 mm) and bacteria S. aureus (average 17.5 mm) were observed for a two-component coating of 98 wt.% Cu and 2 wt.% Ti with a thickness of 5.5 μm. It was found that the amount of copper ions released from Cu-coatings is directly proportional to the thickness of the coating and that the release of the main amount of copper ions (up to 1530 μg/l, for Cu-Ti film) occurs during the first day of immersion in saline. The parameters of magnetron sputtering of antibacterial Cu-Ti thin films on Ti-6Al-4V alloy substrates were selected. The results are promising for the development of manufacturing technologies for medical implant coatings with increased bactericidal and biocompatible surface properties.