Conformal Hybrid Organic/Inorganic Antireflective Coatings

ABSTRACT: The objective of this STTR Phase I proposal is to investigate the feasibility of a hybrid organic/inorganic gradient index anti-reflective (GRIN-AR) coating on both rigid and flexible substrates, based on the resonant infrared matrix assisted pulsed laser evaporation (RIR-MAPLE) process. The hybrid organic/inorganic material approach enables both optical index control, as well as mechanical and thermal durability. The precise control of RIR-MAPLE based film deposition is perfectly suited for GRIN-AR formation since it will allow for the discrete deposition of multi-component hybrid nanocomposites while varying the composition to achieve a GRIN film. The resulting GRIN-AR structure can have the desired reflection of less than 0.5% over the wavelength range of interest (400-750nm) for wide incident angles, with proper control of the index profile. The coating could also be applied to any rigid or flexible substrate for conformal/wearable optics applications. BENEFIT: The mission of ZT Solar is to commercialize optical coating materials and processes to provide cost effective antireflective coatings. The success of the proposed conformal hybrid organic/inorganic GRIN-ARTM structure, based on the RIR-MAPLE process, can offer an environmentally durable, UV-protected AR coating for military and commercial applications such as wearable electronics, protective eye wear and energy efficient light weight solar control coatings.