Hospital Acquired infections (HAI) have become a major problem in western hospitals. Statistics show 1 in 10 patients that are admitted to UK hospitals contract a HAI, costing the NHS approximately �1 billion annually. The spread of nosocomial infections is attributed to contact between healthcare personnel and infected patients. Consequently, the utilisation of antimicrobial surfaces is proposed to decrease HAI. This project investigates antimicrobial thin films using Aerosol-Assisted CVD (AACVD).AACVD is a variation on conventional CVD commonly used to deposit metal oxides, since it depends on precursor solubility rather than volatility.1 Gallium oxide is a semiconductor that can target the iron metabolism in bacteria. Since Ga3+ and Fe3+ have similarities in ionic radius, gallium has been explored as an antimicrobial agent, as it cannot go through redox reactions leaving redox-active enzymes non-functional.2 Zinc oxide, another effective antimicrobial active metal oxide, is thought to generate reactive oxygen species due to leaching of Zn ions.3Deposition and antimicrobial activity of Ga2O3 and ZnO tested against Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus using serial dilution and viable colony counts will be described as well as the incorporation of natural antimicrobial material such as copper into transparent films to enhance efficacy.1) P. Marchard et al, Dalton Trans., 2013  , 42, 9406 � 9422.2) S.P Valapil et al, Adv. Funct. Mater., 2008  , 18, 732-743) S. Liu et al, RSC Adv., 2014  , 4, 4363-4370

Antimicrobial metal oxide thin films for use in healthcare applications

248th National Meeting (2014)

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