Ag-DLC coatings with Ag contents ranging from 1.3 at.% to 13.1 at.% were deposited by DC magnetron sputtering. The coatings were characterized with respect to their structure (by means of XRD and Raman Spectroscopy), mechanical and tribological properties (by scratch test, nanoindentation, residual stress measurements and pin-on-disk test). The incorporation of 13.1 at.% Ag resulted in the formation of Ag grains with 2-3 nm which promoted the increase of graphite like bonds organized in rings. Regarding the mechanical properties, no variations were found for films with Ag contents lower than 13 at.%; a reduction of both hardness and compressive residual stress were then observed for higher values. Pin-on-disk tests were performed at two different contact pressures (690 MPa and 1180 MPa) in dry sliding conditions against a zirconia counterpart. For the lower contact pressure the variations in the wear rate are well correlated with the coatings structure and mechanical properties, while for higher contact pressure the presence of Ag is relevant, Ag-DLC coatings showing higher wear rate than DLC one. SEM analysis revealed the formation of Ag aggregates on the wear track and adhesion of silver to the counterpart.
Ag-TiCN coatings were deposited by dc reactive magnetron sputtering and their structural and morphological properties were evaluated. Compositional analysis showed the existence of Ag-TiCN coatings with different Ag/Ti atomic ratios (ranging from 0 to 1.49). The structural and morphological properties are well correlated with the evolution of Ag/Ti atomic ratio. For the samples with low Ag/Ti atomic ratio (below 0.20) the coatings crystallize in a B1-NaCl crystal structure typical of TiC 0.3 N 0.7. The increase in Ag/Ti atomic ratio promoted the formation of Ag crystalline phases as well as amorphous CN x phases detected in both x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy analysis. Simultaneously to the formation of Ag crystalline phases and amorphous carbon-based phases, a decrease in TiC 0.3 N 0.7 grain size was observed as well as the densification of coatings.
Biofilm formation has been pointed as a major concern in different industrial applications, namely on biomedical implants and surgical instruments, which has prompted the development of new strategies for production of efficient antimicrobial surfaces. In this work, nano-galvanic couples were created to enhance the antibacterial properties of silver, by embedding it into amorphous carbon (a-C) matrix. The developed Ag/a-C nanocomposite coatings, deposited by magnetron sputtering, revealed an outstanding antibacterial activity against Staphylococcus epidermidis, promoting a total reduction in biofilm formation with no bacteria counts in all dilution. The open circuit potential (OCP) tests in 0.9% NaCl confirmed that a-C shows a positive OCP value, in contrast to Ag coating, thus enhancing the ionization of biocidal Ag + due to the nano-galvanic couple activation. This result was confirmed by the inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES), which revealed a higher Ag ionization rate in the nanocomposite coating in comparison with the Ag coating. The surface of Ag/a-C and Ag coatings immersed in 0.9% NaCl were monitored by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) over a period of 24 h, being found that the Ag ionization determined by ICP-OES was accompanied by an Ag nanoparticles coalescence and agglomeration in Ag/a-C coating.
Ag and Ag x O thin films were deposited by non-reactive and reactive pulsed DC magnetron sputtering, respectively, with the final propose of functionalizing the SS316L substrate with antibacterial properties. The coatings were characterized chemically, physically and structurally. The coatings nanostructure was assessed by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), while the coatings morphology was determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The XRD and XPS analyses suggested that Ag thin film is composed by metallic Ag, which crystallizes in fcc-Ag phase, while the Ag x O thin film showed both metallic Ag and Ag O bonds, which crystalize in fcc-Ag and silver oxide phases. The SEM results revealed that Ag thin film formed a continuous layer, while Ag x O layer was composed of islands with hundreds of nanometers surrounded by small nanoparticles with tens of nanometers. The surface wettability and surface tension parameters were determined by contact angle measurements, being found that Ag and Ag x O surfaces showed very similar behavior, with all the surfaces showing a hydrophobic character. In order to verify the antibacterial behavior of the coatings, halo inhibition zone tests were realized for Staphylococcus epidermidis and Staphylococcus aureus. Ag coatings did not show antibacterial behavior, contrarily to Ag x O coating, which presented antibacterial properties against the studied bacteria. The presence of silver oxide phase along with the development of different morphology was pointed as the main factors in the origin of the antibacterial effect found in Ag x O thin film. The present study demonstrated that Ag x O coating presented antibacterial behavior and its application in cardiovascular stents is promising.
Piezoelectric materials are interesting for the development of sensors and actuators for biomedical applications in areas such as smart prosthesis, implantable biosensors and biomechanical signal monitoring, among others. For acquiring or applying the electrical signal from/to the piezoelectric material, suitable electrodes can be produced from Ti based coatings with tailored multifunctional properties: conductivity and antibacterial characteristics through Ag inclusions. This work reports on Ti 1-x Ag x electrodes with different Ag/Ti atomic ratios deposited by d. c. and pulsed magnetron sputtering at room temperature on poly(vinylidene fluoride), PVDF. The X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) results revealed that the deposition conditions preserve the polymer structure and suggested the presence of crystalline Tiβ phase in pure titanium coating and fcc-Ag phase in pure silver coating. According to the results obtained from scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis, the coatings are homogeneous and no clusters were found; since β-PVDF is anisotropic, the deposited coatings replicate the underlying substrate surface. Sheet resistivity values show a typical behavior of a binary alloy system, with low resistivity values for coatings of zone 1 (Ti rich) and zone 3 (Ag rich) and a slightly higher resistivity values in zone 2. The piezoelectricity of the different samples show similar values.
Silver nanoclusters were produced by plasma gas condensation method. The influence of argon flow and current density applied to Ag target on the size distribution of Ag clusters was evaluated. The clusters growth in the substrate was evaluated in static mode and rotation mode. The results indicate that the deposition in rotation mode leads to an increase in the clusters mean size while in static mode aggregation of Ag clusters represents the dominant growth mechanism. The crystalline structure of Ag clusters was evaluated by selected area diffraction patterns and X-ray diffraction, which suggested the formation of crystalline Ag. Scanning electron microscopy/energy dispersive spectrometry analysis of Ag films revealed the formation of porous Ag structures and no oxygen was found.
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