Fabrication of cell orientation control surface on Co–Cr alloy by polycrystalline diamond micromilling

This study presents a novel approach to surface texturing on metal cell culture vessels using polycrystalline diamond micromilling. Continuous microgrooves on Co–Cr alloy surfaces were successfully generated by utilizing an ultrafine ball end mill with a tool tip radius of 25 µm. The resulting microgrooves, 30 µm wide, exhibited a surface roughness (Ra) of less than 20 nm. The continuous plastic flow is the primary mechanism driving material removal during the micromilling process with the tool. Additionally, cell culture experiments demonstrated a pronounced alignment of cells in the grooves, especially those created with the 25 µm tool tip radius.