The surface antibacterial properties and biocompatibility of biopolymers can be enhanced by means of
plasma immersion ion implantation (PIII). In the work described here, the effects of Cu and Ag PIII on
polyethylene (PE) are investigated and compared. The growth and behavior of different cell lines on the
modified surfaces are determined. Our data reveal that although the Ag elemental depth profiles are similar
to those of Cu, there is a larger amount of surface Ag compared to Cu possibly due to the different charge
states in the plasma. Photoluminescence is found to be enhanced after Cu and Ag PIII based on Raman
studies. Antibacterial tests against E. coli show that the Ag PIII PE has better antibacterial properties than the
Cu PIII one in spite of implantation using similar parameters. Based on cell assays, both the Ag PIII PE and Cu
PIII PE samples exhibit excellent biocompatibility for bone cells. However, the Chinese hamster ovary (CHO)
cells show a non-uniform distribution on the Cu PIII PE and Ag PIII PE surfaces after incubating for 2 days.
Therefore, the PE surfaces after Cu and Ag PIII show little adhesion and biocompatibility for CHO cells.