Bi-layered metal-ceramic component for dental implants by spark plasma sintering

The current work reports the fabrication of bilayered single-piece Ti6Al4V-YSZ dental implants through spark plasma sintering. A tapered die was custom designed to produce a single component consisting of two different materials having widely differing sintering temperatures in a one-step process. The Ti6Al4V and the YSZ parts of the bilayered component act as the fixture and crown respectively, alleviating the problems associated with conventional two-piece or three-piece implants. The bi-layered component possesses good mechanical properties and in-vitro biological properties like good biocompatibility, non-cytotoxicity, good cell adhesion and hemo-compatibility, making them suitable as dental implants.