Abstract
Titanium (Ti)-based alloys are eye-catching biomaterials extensively utilized in human implants due to their outstanding ability to facilitate cell growth. This research aims to propose a new approach to explore the ultrafast laser processing on alloy surfaces for achieving and regulating the proliferation of biological cells. The study is to directly use the polarization of ultrafast laser irradiation on the surface of chromium-titanium nitride (CrTiN) thin film to fabricate the periodic structures, which can promote cell proliferation. This improvement is accomplished by employing surface patterning and creating nanocrystalline structures. The nanocrystalline layer is treated with laser-induced periodic surface structures (LIPSS), forming subwavelength ripples directly on the surface. The ripples are preferentially formed perpendicular to the direction of laser polarization by controlling the fluence. Through the straightforward technique of ultrafast laser treatment, the wettability transition is contributed to by the combination of LIPSS and modified surface chemistry. It is indicated by the findings that the laser-irradiated CrTiN alloy film exhibits surface ripples and a nanocrystalline phase. This work has the potential to enhance cell proliferation for biomedical engineering applications.
Similar content being viewed by others
Data availability
All the data generated or analyzed during this investigation is included in this article.
References
M. Moraskie, M.H.O. Roshid, G. O’Connor, J. Zingg, S. Daunert, Microbial whole-cell biosensors: Current applications, challenges, and future perspectives. Biosens. Bioelectron. 191, 113359 (2021)
M. Samandari, F. Saeedinejad, J. Quint, S.Y. Chuah, R. Farzad, A. Tamayol, Repurposing biomedical muscle tissue engineering for cellular agriculture: challenges and opportunities. Trends Biotechnol. 41, 887–906 (2023)
A. Nazir, O. Gokcekaya, K. M. M. Billah, O. Ertugrul, J. Jiang, Ji. Sun, S. Hussain, Multi-material additive manufacturing: A systematic review of design, properties, applications, challenges, and 3D printing of materials and cellular metamaterials, Materials & Design. 226 111661 (2023).
Y. Vorobyev, C. Guo, Multifunctional surfaces produced by femtosecond laser pulses. J. Appl. Phys. 117, 033103 (2015)
Z.C. Chen, T.L. Chang, C.C. Liu, W.T. Hsiao, C.H. Huang, Picosecond laser surface modification of aluminum oxide with fish-scale structures for cell culture. Ceram. Int. 46, 17651–17658 (2020)
C. Yao, S. Xu, Y. Ye, Y. Jiang, R. Ding, W. Gao, X. Yuan, The influence of femtosecond laser repetition rates and pulse numbers on the formation of micro/nano structures on stainless steel. J. Alloy.s Compd. 722, 235–241 (2017).
O. Armbruster, A. Naghilou, M. Kitzler, W. Kautek, Spot size and pulse number dependence of femtosecond laser ablation thresholds of silicon and stainless steel. Appl. Surf. Sci. 396, 1736–1740 (2017)
J. Bonse, S. Höhm, S.V. Kirner, A. Rosenfeld, J. Krüger, Laser-induced periodic surface structures – a scientific evergreen. IEEE J. Sel. Top. Quantum Electron. 23, 9000615 (2017)
Z. Wu, K. Yin, J. Wu, Z. Zhu, J.A. Duan, J. He, Recent advances in femtosecond laser-structured Janus membranes with asymmetric surface wettability. Nanoscale 13, 2209–2226 (2021)
O. Varlamova, C. Martens, M. Ratzke, J. Reif, Genesis of femtosecond-induced nanostructures on solid surfaces. Appl. Opt. 53, I10–I15 (2014)
Z. Guosheng, P.M. Fauchet, A.E. Siegman, Growth of spontaneous periodic surface structures on solids during laser illumination. Phys. Rev. B 26, 5366 (1982)
J. Bonse, S. Gräf, Maxwell meets Marangoni—a review of theories on laser-induced periodic surface structures. Laser Photon. Rev. 14, 2000215 (2020)
F.A. Müller, C. Kunz, S. Gräf, Bio-inspired functional surfaces based on laser-induced periodic surface structures. Materials 9, 476 (2016)
K. Yin, H. Du, X. Dong, C. Wang, J.A. Duan, J. He, A simple way to achieve bioinspired hybrid wettability surface with micro/nanopatterns for efficient fog collection. Nanoscale 9, 14620–14626 (2017)
S. Milles, M. Solderaa, T. Kuntze, A.F. Lasagni, Haracterization of self-cleaning properties on superhydrophobic aluminum surfaces fabricated by direct laser writing and direct laser interference patterning. Appl. Surf. Sci. 525, 146518 (2020)
A. Jorge-Mora, N. Imaz, E. Garcia-Lecina, G.M. O’Connor, R. Gómez-Vaamonde, A. Alonso-Pérez, E. Franco-Trepat, C. García-Santiago, J. Pino-Minguez, D. Nieto, In vitro response of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (hBMSCs) on laser-induced periodic surface structures for hard tissue replacement: comparison between tantalum and titanium. Opt. Lasers Eng. 111, 34–41 (2018)
A. Papadopoulos, E. Skoulas, A. Mimidis, G. Perrakis, G. Kenanakis, G.D. Tsibidis, E. Stratakis, Biomimetic omnidirectional antireflective glass via direct ultrafast laser nanostructuring. Adv. Mater. 31, 1901123 (2019)
M.M. Calderon, M.M. Silván, A. Rodríguez, M.G. Aranzadi, J.P.G. Ruiz, S.M. Olaizola, R.J.M. Palma, Surface micro- and nano-texturing of stainless steel by femtosecond laser for the control of cell migration. Sci. Rep. 6, 36296 (2016)
L.N. Wang, M. Jin, Y. Zheng, Y. Guan, X. Lu, J.L. Luo, Nanotubular surface modification of metallic implants via electrochemical anodization technique. Int. J. Nanomedicine 9, 4421–4435 (2014)
R. Van Noort, Review titanium: the implant material of today. J. Mater. Sci. 22, 3801–3811 (1987)
J.W. Du, L. Chen, J. Chen, Y. Du, Mechanical properties, thermal stability and oxidation resistance of TiN/CrN multilayer coatings. Vacuum 179, 109468 (2020)
X. Xu, F. Su, Z. Li, Microstructure and tribological behaviors of MoN-Cu nanocomposite coating sliding against Si3N4 ball under dry and oil-lubricated conditions. Wear 434–435, 202994 (2019)
S.C. Liao, C.Y. Chen, Y.H. Hsu, C.T. Li, C.C. Hsieh, M.S. Tsai, M.Y. Chen, C.C. Hung, S.H. Wang, S.K. Ng, H.K. Tsou, W.Y. Wu, In vitro and in vivo biocompatibility study of surface modified TiN deposited on Ti6Al4V using high-power impulse magnetron sputtering technique. Surf. Coat. Technol. 394, 0125814 (2020)
Q. Yang, L. R. Zhao, P. Patnaik Erosion performance, corrosion characteristics and hydrophobicity of nanolayered and multilayered metal nitride coatings. Surf. Coat. Technol. 375, 763–772 (2019).
J.F. Correa, W. Aperador, J.C. Caicedo, N.C. Alba, C. Amaya, Structural mechanical and tribological behavior of TiCN, CrAlN and BCN coatings in lubricated and non-lubricated environments in manufactured devices. Mater. Chem. Phys. 252, 123164 (2020)
H. Chen, Y. Ye, C. Wang, X. Ma, W. Liu, Understanding the corrosion and tribological behaviors of CrSiN coatings with various Si contents in HCl solution. Tribol. Int. 131, 530–540 (2019)
J. Lin, N. Zhang, W. D. Sproul, J. J. Moore A comparison of the oxidation behavior of CrN films deposited using continuous DC, pulsed DC and modulated pulsed power magnetron sputtering. Surf. Coat. Technol. 206, 3283–3290 (2012).
N. Yasumaru, K. Miyazaki, J. Kiuchi, Femtosecond-laser-induced nanostructure formed on hard thin films of TiN and DLC. Appl. Phys. A 76, 983–985 (2003)
X. Gao, W. Feng, Z. Zhu, Z. Wu, S. Li, S. Kan, X. Qiu, A. Guo, W. Chen, K. Yin, Rapid fabrication of superhydrophilic micro/nanostructured nickel foam toward high-performance glucose sensor. Adv. Mater. Interfaces 8, 2002133 (2021)
O. Raimbault, S. Benayoun, K. Anselme, C. Mauclair, T. Bourgade, A.M. Kietzig, P.L. Lauriault, S. Valette, C. Donnet, The effects of femtosecond laser-textured Ti-6Al-4V on wettability and cell response. Mater. Sci. Eng. C 69, 311–320 (2016)
E. Rebollar, I. Frischauf, M. Olbrich, T. Peterbauer, S. Hering, J. Preiner, P. Hinterdorfer, C. Romanin, J. Heitz, Proliferation of aligned mammalian cells on laser-nanostructured polystyrene. Biomaterials 29, 1796–1806 (2008)
T. Shinonaga, M. Tsukamoto, T. Kawa, P. Chen, A. Nagai, T. Hanawa, Formation of periodic nanostructures using a femtosecond laser to control cell spreading on titanium. Appl. Phys. B 119, 493–496 (2015)
G.H. Balbus, M.P. Echlin, C.M. Grigorian, T.J. Rupert, T.M. Pollocka, D.S. Gianol, Femtosecond laser rejuvenation of nanocrystalline metals. Acta Mater. 156, 183–195 (2018)
H. Li, P. Wang, C. Wen, C. Wen, Recent progress on nanocrystalline metallic materials for biomedical applications. Nanomaterials 12, 2111 (2022)
F. Bray, J. Ferlay, I. Soerjomataram, R.L. Siegel, L.A. Torre, A. Jemal, Global cancer statistics 2018: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J. Clin. 68, 394–424 (2018)
J. C. Nawroth, R. Barrile, D. Conegliano, S, V. Riet, P. S. Hiemstra, R. Villenave, Stem cell-based lung-on-chips: the best of both worlds? Adv Drug Deliv Rev. 140, 12–32 (2019).
A. Kehal, N. Saoula, S.E.H. Abaidia, C. Nouveau, Effect of Ar/N2 flow ratio on the microstructure and mechanical properties of Ti-Cr-N coatings deposited by DC magnetron sputtering on AISI D2 tool steels. Surf. Coat. Technol. 421, 127444 (2021)
A. Gangwar, S. Kumar, S.S. Meena, A. Sharma, M.K. Viswanadh, K. Neogi, M.S. Muthu, N.K. Prasad, Structural and in-vitro assessment of ZnxFe3−xC (0 ≤ x ≤ 1) nanoparticles as magnetic biomaterials. Appl. Surf. Sci. 509, 144891 (2020)
G.D. Tsibidis, E. Skoulas, E. Stratakis, Ripple formation on nickel irradiated with radially polarized femtosecond beams. Opt. Lett. 40, 5172–5175 (2015)
P. Cheng, T. Ye, H. Zeng, J. Ding, Raman spectra investigation on the pressure-induced phase transition in titanium nitride (TiN). AIP Adv. 10, 045110 (2020)
H. F. Li, F. L. Nie, Y. F. Zheng, Y. Cheng, S. C. Wei, R. Z. Valiev, Nanocrystalline Ti49.2Ni50.8 shape memory alloy as orthopaedic implant material with better performance. J Mater Sci Technol 35, 2156–2162 (2019).
J. Lin, B. Mishra, J.J. Moore, W.D. Sproul, A study of the oxidation behavior of CrN and CrAlN thin films in air using DSC and TGA analyses. Surf. Coat. Technol. 202, 3272–3283 (2008)
S. Takeda, M. Fukawa, Y. Hayashi, K. Matsumoto, Surface OH group governing adsorption properties of metal oxide films. Thin Solid Films 339, 220–224 (1999)
A. Samanta, Q. Wang, S.K. Shaw, H. Ding, Roles of chemistry modification for laser textured metal alloys to achieve extreme surface wetting behaviors. Mater. Des. 192, 108744 (2020)
Y. Dong, P. Li, C.B. Chen, Z.H. Wang, P. Ma, G.Q. Chen, The improvement of fibroblast growth on hydrophobic biopolyesters by coating with polyhydroxyalkanoate granule binding protein PhaP fused with cell adhesion motif RGD. Biomaterials 31, 8921–8930 (2010)
S.M. Pimenov, E.V. Zavedeev, N.R. Arutyunyan, M.Y. Presniakov, O.S. Zilova, M.L. Shupegin, B. Jaeggi, B. Neuenschwander, Femtosecond-laser-ablation induced transformations in the structure and surface properties of diamond-like nanocomposite films. Appl. Surf. Sci. 509, 144907 (2020)
K. Alam, M.B. Haider, M.F. Al-Kuhaili, K.A. Ziq, B.U. Haq, Electronic phase transition in CrN thin films grown by reactive RF magnetron sputtering. Ceram. Int. 48, 17352–17358 (2022)
M. Liu, Z. Yang, L. Dong, Z. Wang, S. Wang, L. Wang, Y. Xie, Q. Zhang, Z. Weng, Y. Tian, Vacuum conditions for tunable wettability transition on laser ablated Ti-6Al-4V alloy surfaces. Colloids Surf A Physicochem Eng Asp 647, 129023 (2022)
I. Ghemras, L. Montes, C.L. Santos, A.R. González-Elipe, V. Rico, Exalted dual-scale surface roughening in laser ablated aluminum capped with a transparent thin film: Wetting and anti-icing behavior. Appl. Surf. Sci. 630, 157357 (2023)
L.Å. Näslund, I. Persson, XPS spectra curve fittings of Ti3C2Tx based on first principles thinking. Appl. Surf. Sci. 593, 153442 (2022)
W. Huang, B. Anvari, J.H. Torres, R.G. LeBaron, K.A. Athanasiou, Temporal effects of cell adhesion on mechanical characteristics of the single chondrocyte. J. Orthop. Res. 21, 88–95 (2003)
M. Polak, K. Berniak, P.K. Szewczyk, J.E. Karbowniczek, M.M. Marzec, U. Stachewicz, PLLA scaffolds with controlled surface potential and piezoelectricity for enhancing cell adhesion in tissue engineering. Appl. Surf. Sci. 621, 156835 (2023)
Y. Wang, L. Chen, R. Hou, L. Bai, S. Guan, Rapamycin-loaded nanocoating to specially modulate smooth muscle cells on ZE21B alloy for vascular stent application. Appl. Surf. Sci. 615, 156410 (2023)
H. Yilmazer, M. Şenc, M. Niinomi, M. Nakai, L. Huihong, K. Cho, Y. Todaka, H. Shiku, T. Matsue, Developing biomedical nano-grained β-type titanium alloys using high pressure torsion for improved cell adherence. RSC Adv. 6, 7426–7430 (2016)
R. Olivares-Navarrete, S.E. Rodil, S.L. Hyzy, G.R. Dunn, A. Almaguer-Flores, Z. Schwartz, B.D. Boyan, Role of integrin subunits in mesenchymal stem cell differentiation and osteoblast maturation on graphitic carbon-coated microstructured surfaces. Biomaterials 51, 69–79 (2015)
C. Goldy, M. Caillaud, Connecting the plant cytoskeleton to the cell surface via the phosphoinositides. Curr. Opin. Plant Biol. 73, 102365 (2023)
Acknowledgements
The authors acknowledge the support by the National Science and Technology Council, Republic of China (Taiwan) under Grant Nos. 112-2622-E-003-002, 111-2221-E-003-008-MY3, 110-2222-E-038-004-MY2, and 109-2628-E-003 -001 -MY3.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Contributions
Q-XW: investigation, data curation, validation, visualization, and writing—review & editing; T-LC: methodology, conceptualization, validation, writing—review & editing, and funding acquisition; Z-CC: methodology, investigation, validation, writing—review & editing, and funding acquisition; W-TH: investigation, formal analysis, investigation, validation, and visualization; S-PH: investigation, data curation, investigation, validation, and visualization.
Corresponding authors
Ethics declarations
Conflict of interest
The authors declare having no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
Additional information
Publisher's Note
Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.
Rights and permissions
Springer Nature or its licensor (e.g. a society or other partner) holds exclusive rights to this article under a publishing agreement with the author(s) or other rightsholder(s); author self-archiving of the accepted manuscript version of this article is solely governed by the terms of such publishing agreement and applicable law.
About this article
Cite this article
Wu, QX., Chang, TL., Chen, ZC. et al. Investigation of ultrafast laser surface patterning and nanocrystalline formation on CrTiN alloy films for enhanced cell proliferation. Appl. Phys. A 130, 161 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-023-07246-0
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00339-023-07246-0