Diamond-like carbon coatings on Ti-13Nb-13Zr alloy produced by plasma immersion for orthopaedic applications

Diamond-like carbon (DLC) films have been intensively studied with a view to improving orthopaedic implants. Various techniques have been employed to manufacture DLC films, and recently, the plasma immersion process has been used to provide non-line-of-sight deposition on three-dimensional pieces with complex shapes. In this method, the whole surface of the target is coated, even without moving the sample, and without an intermediate layer. DLC films were deposited on a silicon wafer and Ti-13Nb-13Zr alloy substrates, using the plasma immersion process. The films were analysed by Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy (AFM), and nanoindentation. As examples, uniformly DLC coated orthopaedic implants (knee implant and femoral head) are shown.