Antibacterial activity of a porous silver doped TiO2 coating on titanium substrates synthesized by plasma electrolytic oxidation

•Ag-free and Ag-doped TiO2 were fabricated on commercially pure titanium by PEO.•The silver wt% on the coating increases with increasing concentration of AgNPs in the electrolyte.•PEO coatings exhibited increased surface micro hardness, roughness and wettability relative to untreated Ti.•A dose-dependent effect of Ag-doped TiO2 on antibacterial activity was observed.