Physical and biological properties of the ion beam irradiated PMMA-based composite films

Abstract Polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) and PMMA-hydroxyapatite (PMMA-HAp) composite films, prepared by the solvent evaporation method were irradiated with 100 MeV Si 7+ ions. Crystallographic, morphological and the functional groups of the pristine and irradiated samples were studied using glancing incident X-ray diffraction (GIXRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy-attenuated total reflectance (FTIR-ATR) respectively. SEM reveals the creation of pores, along with an increase in porosity and cluster size on irradiation. Decrease in crystalline nature and crystallite size with an increase in ion fluence was observed from GIXRD patterns. The surface roughness and the wettability of the material were also enhanced, which could favour the cell–material interaction. The irradiated samples adsorbed significantly greater amount of proteins than pristine. Also, irradiation does not produce any toxic byproducts or leachants, and maintains the viability of 3T3 cells. The response of the irradiated samples towards biomedical applications was demonstrated by the improved antimicrobial activity, haemocompatibility and cytocompatibility. Swift heavy ion irradiation (SHI) could be an effective tool to modify and engineer the surface properties of the polymers to enhance the biocompatibility.