Increasing Hydrophobicity of Amorphous Carbon Coatings by Controlling Surface Patterning for Surgical Tools and Medical Applications

The phenomenon of human tissue sticking to surgical tools often adds difficulties during surgery, especially in tools that are operating at elevated temperatures. Due to good hydrophobicity and outstanding tribological and bio-compatible properties, amorphous carbon (a-C) coatings have been found to be a candidate with good potential for applications in non-sticking and bio-medical devices. Typically, the hydrophobic property of a-C coatings can be improved by alloying with other elements such as silicon and fluorine. In this investigation, the researchers propose a method to increase the hydrophobicity of the carbon coatings by modifying the surface topography of the substrate materials. The research investigates the effect of surface patterning on the hydrophobicity of the carbon coatings. The width and the height of generated protrusions and the distance between two protrusions will be optimized to improve the hydrophobicity of the coatings, with the aim of reducing sticking during surgery. In addition, tribological and blood compatibility tests will be performed to assess the wear resistance and the bio-compatibility of the improved carbon coatings.