Abstract
The deposition of thin films of bioactive materials is the most common approach to improve the bone bonding ability of an implant surface. With this purpose, several wet and plasma assisted deposition methods were proposed in the scientific literature. In this review, we considered films obtained by nanosecond Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD). Since hydroxyapatite (HA) has composition and structure similar to that of the mineral component of the bone, the initial studies focused on the selection of experimental conditions that would allow the deposition of films that retain HA stoichiometry and crystallinity. However, biological apatite was found to be a poorly crystalline and multi-substituted mineral; consequently, the attention of researchers was oriented towards the deposition of substituted HA, glass (BG), and glass-ceramic (BGC) bioactive materials to exploit the biological relevance of foreign ions and crystallinity. In this work, after a description of the nanosecond ablation and film growth of ceramic materials, we reported studies on the mechanism of HA ablation and deposition, evidencing the peculiarities of PLD. The literature concerning the PLD of ion substituted HA, BG, and BGC was then reviewed and the performances of the coatings were discussed. We concluded by describing the advantages, limitations, and perspectives of PLD for biomedical applications.
Highlights
With increasing life expectancy, diseases connected to hard tissue, both bone and dental, can compromise the quality of life
Non-metallic, solid materials consisting of metal, non-metal, or metalloid atoms, with interatomic bonding, which is generally synthesized at elevated temperatures
Among alternative physical deposition techniques, Ion Beam Assisted Deposition (IBAD), Radio Frequency Magnetron Sputtering (RF-MS), and Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) are frequently proposed to create biocompatible films with interesting morphological and mechanical properties that can overcome the limits of Plasma Spray (PS)-coated implants
Summary
Diseases connected to hard tissue, both bone and dental, can compromise the quality of life. Among alternative physical deposition techniques, Ion Beam Assisted Deposition (IBAD), Radio Frequency Magnetron Sputtering (RF-MS), and Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) are frequently proposed to create biocompatible films with interesting morphological and mechanical properties that can overcome the limits of PS-coated implants. Bioactive films deposited by IBAD have high adhesion strength, since ion bombardment result in an atomic intermixed zone between the coating and the substrate surface [29,30,31], whereas the films’ crystallinity can be controlled by manipulating the substrate temperature during deposition. Calcium phosphate-based coatings obtained by PLD present good mechanical performance, such as adhesion strength and hardness and, compared to RF-MS films, a rougher surface. All these properties could be beneficial in improving the films’ bioactivity [35]. We decided to not consider these studies in this paper since a review reporting recent advances in the deposition of biogenic HA was recently published [41]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a call
