Haemocompatibility studies on carbon-based thin films by ellipsometry

Carbon-based thin films, such as amorphous carbon (a-C) and amorphous hydrogenated diamond-like carbon (a-C:H or DLC) are considered as excellent candidates for use as bicompatible coatings on biomedical implants. This arises not only due to their excellent properties, but also due to their chemical composition containing only carbon and hydrogen, which are biological compatibles. The aim of this work is the comparative study of the haemocompatibility of the carbon-based thin films developed by magnetron sputtering under various deposition conditions. Haemocompatibility is one of the most important properties, together with the tissue compatibility and corrosion and wear resistance, that determine the biocompatibility of the artificial implants.