Tuning the biocompatibility of aluminum nitride

High-quality, electronic-grade, aluminum nitride thin films grown by reactive sputtering were studied in vitro. The semiconductor material showed high degree of stability in cell culture with very little Al leaching over time. Unlike other III-nitride materials, clean AIN does not promote the adhesion of cells to its surface. The work demonstrates that functionalization with peptides can be used to reverse this behavior. The presence of AIN in cell culture does not have any adverse effects on neurotypic cell behavior as confirmed by cell viability and reactive oxygen species assays.