Silicon-substituted hydroxyapatite thin films

Abstract

There have been numerous interests in the development of hydroxyapatite (HA) coatings on metallic orthopedic implants to maintain mechanical strength while exploiting the excellent biological properties of HA. The addition of silicon (Si) to HA has been demonstrated to enhance the rate of bone repair processing. Magnetron sputtering is a physical vapor deposition technique with the ability to achieve dense, well adhered thin coatings. This chapter describes the synthesis and characterization of Si-substituted HA thin coatings on a titanium substrate, giving good physical, chemical, and biological characteristics for bone ingrowth. © 2009 Springer-Verlag New York.