Papers by Author: Zoe H. Barber

Abstract: Crystalline hydroxyapatite (HA) and 0.8 wt.% silicon-substituted HA (SiHA) thin films were produced using magnetron co-sputtering. These films were subjected to contact angle measurements and in vitro cell culture study using human osteoblast-like (HOB) cells. A wettability study showed that SiHA has a lower contact angle, and thus is more hydrophilic in nature, as compared to HA. Consequently, enhanced cell growth was observed on SiHA at all time-points. Furthermore, distinct and well-developed actin filaments could be seen within HOB cells on SiHA. Thus, this work demonstrated that the surface properties of the coating may be modified by the substitution of Si into the HA structure.

Abstract: Nanostructured hydroxyapatite (nHA) thin coatings of thickness 0.5 µm have been successfully produced using a radio-frequency magnetron sputtering technique, through careful selection and control of the processing conditions. nHA coatings were immersed in simulated body fluid (SBF) to determine the rate of nucleation and growth of an apatite layer on their surface. A dense, newlyformed apatite layer with similar characteristics to that of the biological bone apatite, was observed after 7 days of immersion in SBF. X-ray diffraction and infrared analyses confirmed this layer to be calcium-deficient nanocrystalline carbonate HA. All these results demonstrated that the novel nHA coatings were highly bioactive, and the time-frame required to form a dense apatite layer was reduced significantly as compared to the micrometer-sized, sintered HA pellets (from 28 days to 7 days).

Abstract: 0.8 wt.% silicon-containing hydroxyapatite (Si-HA) thin films of thickness 600 nm have been successfully developed using a magnetron co-sputtering technique, through careful selection and control of the processing conditions. These films were immersed in simulated body fluid (SBF) to investigate the nucleation and growth of an apatite layer on their surfaces. A newly-formed apatite layer with similar characteristics to that of the biological bone apatite, was observed after 4 days of immersion in SBF. X-ray diffraction and infrared analyses confirmed this layer to be calciumdeficient micro-crystalline carbonate HA. These results demonstrated that the novel Si-HA films were highly bioactive and the time frame required for apatite formation was reduced by approximately 76 % (from 17 days to 4 days).

Abstract: To study the effects of doping the layered perovskite SrBi2Ta2O9 with an appropriate amount of tungsten, both undoped and W-doped SrBi2Ta2O9 (SBT) of nanocrystallinity were synthesized by mechanical activation of constituent oxides of strontium oxide, bismuth oxide, tantalum oxide and tungsten oxide at room temperature. A nanocrystalline single perovskite phase was observed in SrBi2(Ta1-xWx)2O9 with up to x=0.1. SrBi2(Ta0.9W0.1)2O9 shows a higher Curie temperature than that of undoped SBT, although it exhibits a very similar layered perovskite structure. The ferroelectric and impedance behaviors of SrBi2 (Ta0.9W0.1)2O9 were studied over a range of test temperatures and frequencies, in order to understand the effects of W-doping in SBT, given that W exhibits a similar ionic size to Ta but with a variable valence.