Hydrophobic and wide-angle anti-reflecting nanostructured coatings on hemispherical domes and windows; including high-refractive index surfaces

It is imperative for the US NAVY that the submarine window/dome surfaces are free from sun glint and are water repellent so that visibility of the imaging sensors unit can properly operate during surveillance mission after surfacing. The goal of this proposal is to demonstrate the feasibility of producing hydrophobic, broadband, and wide-angle random nanostructured antireflection (RAR) coatings that will diminish sun glint down to 0.05 % over the hemispheric dome/window surfaces. The main technical objective is to develop a robust process to uniformly coat RAR nanostructures over the curved window/dome surfaces using a simple molding technique; nanoimprint lithography. RAR surface will be covered with a durable thin-layer coating for lasting durability and water-repellency.