Implantable materials having engineered surfaces made by vacuum deposition and method of making same
View Patent ↗An implantable biocompatible material includes one or more vacuum deposited layers of biocompatible materials deposited upon a biocompatible base material. At least a top most vacuum deposited layer includes a homogeneous molecular pattern of distribution along the surface thereof and comprises a patterned array of geometric physiologically functional features.
1. An implantable, biocompatible material, comprising one or more vacuum deposited layers of biocompatible materials deposited upon a biocompatible base material, wherein at least a top most vacuum deposited layer includes a homogeneous molecular pattern of distribution along the surface thereof and comprises a patterned array of geometric features.
2. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 1 , wherein the one or more vacuum deposited layers of biocompatible materials differ from the biocompatible base material in a material property selected from the group of material properties consisting of: grain size, grain phase, grain material composition, surface topography, and transition temperature.
3. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 1 , wherein a gap distance measured between immediately adjacent geometric features measures between about 1 nanometer and about 2000 nanometers, and wherein the gap distance measures about the same as a width of each of the geometric features.
4. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 3 , wherein each vacuum deposited layer of biocompatible material has a thickness between about 1 nm and about 3 μm.
5. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 4 , wherein the geometric features comprise recesses into the surface having a depth including a plurality of vacuum deposited layers.
6. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 4 , wherein the geometric features comprise recesses into the surface having a depth at least equal to the thickness of the top most vacuum deposited layer.
7. An implantable, biocompatible material, comprising:
a biocompatible base material; and
one or more vacuum deposited layers of biocompatible materials, wherein the one or more vacuum deposited layers are deposited upon the biocompatible base material,
wherein at least a top most vacuum deposited layer includes a homogeneous molecular pattern of distribution along the surface thereof and the top most vacuum deposited layer further comprises a patterned array of geometric features, wherein the geometric features have an elevation above the top most vacuum deposited layer.
8. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 7 , wherein the one or more vacuum deposited layers of biocompatible materials differ from the biocompatible base material in a material property selected from the group of material properties consisting of: grain size, grain phase, grain material composition, surface topography, and transition temperature.
9. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 7 , wherein a gap distance measured between immediately adjacent geometric features measures between about 1 nanometer and about 2000 nanometers, and wherein the gap distance measures about the same as a width of each of the geometric features.
10. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 9 , wherein each vacuum deposited layer of biocompatible material has a thickness between about 1 nm and about 3 μm.
11. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 10 , wherein the geometric features have a thickness between about 1 nm and about 3 μm.
12. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 10 , wherein the geometric features comprise one or more layers of vacuum deposited material.
13. An implantable, biocompatible material, comprising:
a biocompatible base material; and
one or more vacuum deposited layers of biocompatible materials deposited upon the biocompatible base material,
wherein at least a top most vacuum deposited layer includes a homogeneous molecular pattern of distribution along the surface thereof and comprises a patterned array of geometric features, wherein the features comprise recesses into at least the top most vacuum deposited layer.
14. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 13 , wherein the one or more vacuum deposited layers of biocompatible materials differ from the biocompatible base material in a material property selected from the group of material properties consisting of: grain size, grain phase, grain material composition, surface topography, and transition temperature.
15. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 13 , wherein a gap distance measured between immediately adjacent geometric features measures between about 1 nanometer and about 2000 nanometers, and wherein the gap distance measures about the same as a width of each of the geometric features.
16. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 15 , wherein each vacuum deposited layer of biocompatible material has a thickness between about 1 nm and about 3 μm.
17. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 16 , wherein the geometric features comprise recesses having a depth including a plurality of the one or more vacuum deposited layers.
18. The implantable, biocompatible material of claim 16 , wherein the geometric features comprise recesses having a depth at least equal to the thickness of the top most vacuum deposited layer.