Enhanced physicochemical and biological properties of C/Cu dual ions implanted medical titanium.

It is increasingly popular for titanium and its alloys to be utilized as the medical implants. However, their bio-inert nature and lack of antibacterial ability limit their applications. In this work, by utilizing plasma immersion ion implantation and deposition (PIII&D) technology, the titanium surface was modified by C/Cu co-implantation. The mechanical property, corrosion resistance, antibacterial ability and cytocompatibility of modified samples were studied. Results indicate that after C/Cu co-implantation, copper nanoparticles were observed on the surface of titanium, and titanium carbide existed on the near surface region of titanium. The modified surface displayed good mechanical property and corrosion resistance. The Cu/C galvanic corrosion existed on the titanium surface implanted by C/Cu dual ions, and release of copper ions can be effectively controlled by the galvanic corrosion effect. Moreover, improved antibacterial performance of titanium surface can be achieved without cytotoxicity.