Enhanced bone forming ability of SLA-treated Ti coated with a calcium phosphate thin film formed by e-beam evaporation.

With an electron-beam evaporation process, a calcium phosphate (Ca-P) thin film of approximately 500 nm thick was deposited on sand blasted with large grits and acid etched (SLA) Ti without changing the typical morphology of the SLA surface. Dissolution behavior was investigated by measuring the amount of dissolved phosphate ions with ion chromatography after immersing the SLA Ti sample coated with a Ca-P film in 1 ml de-ionized water maintained at 37 degrees C for different periods of soaking time, and the surface morphology was observed with field emission scanning electron microscopy. The amount of phosphate ions increased quickly right after immersion but began to decrease after 2 days of immersion by redeposition with Ca ions as apatite, and the amount of biomimetic apatite increased with the extended soaking time. The Saos-2 cell was more attached on the coated surface, and the in vivo evaluation was that the Ca-P deposited SLA implant greatly improved the new bone formation ability.