A new approach for hydroxyapatite coating on polymeric materials using laser-induced precursor formation and subsequent aging.

A new process, laser-induced precursor formation and subsequent aging in a supersaturated calcium phosphate aqueous solution (CP solution), was applied for coating a hydroxyapatite (HAP) film on a polymeric material, ethylene-vinyl alcohol copolymer (EVOH). Laser irradiation onto EVOH immersed in the CP solution induced the formation of CP precursors, and an HAP film composed of a submicrometer-scale cavernous structure was formed by subsequent aging in a CP solution without laser irradiation. The resulting HAP film coated on EVOH demonstrated excellent structural and chemical uniformity and cell adhesion with the CHO-K1 and BHK-21 cells. This process provides a practical technique for coating HAP onto polymeric materials.