Surface spectroscopic characterization of titanium implant materials

Abstract Titanium is one of the most commonly used biomaterials for dental and orthopedic applications. Its excellent tissue compatibility is mainly due to the properties of the stable oxide layer which is present on the surface. This paper reports a detailed spectroscopic characterization of the surface composition of non-alloyed Ti implant materials, prepared according to procedures commonly used in clinical practice (machining, ultrasonic cleaning and sterilization). The main methods of characterization are XPS and AES, and complementary information is obtained by SIMS, EDX and NMA (nuclear microanalysis). The surface of the implants is found to consist of a thin surface oxide which is covered by a carbon-dominated contamination layer. By comparison with reference spectra from single crystal TiO2 (rutile) the composition of the surface oxide is shown to be mainly TiO2, with minor amounts of suboxides and TiNx. The thickness of the surface oxides is 2–6 nm, depending on the method of sterilization. The surface contamination layer is found to vary considerably from sample to sample and consists of mainly hydrocarbons with trace amounts of Ca, N, S, P, Cl. Some differences in surface composition between directly prepared surfaces, and some possible contamination sources, are identified and discussed shortly.

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