Deposits of silver nanoparticle-containing plasma polymer. Prevention of biological surface contamination
Abstract
A process combining silver sputtering and plasma polymerization of hexamethyldisiloxane (HMDSO) was adjusted by HMDSO-pulsed injections. It produced stable coatings of silver-containing SiCO material deposited on stainless steel. The antibacterial activity of the silver-composite coatings was evaluated on the model bacteria Escherichia coli ATCC 10536. The bactericidal properties of the silver nanoparticle-containing plasma polymer were demonstrated. Indeed, a significant drop in viable bacterial count (> 4 log reduction) was observed, whatever the Ag content.