Industrial processing of TiO2 thin films from soluble precursor powders

Soluble, amorphous powders were prepared as precursors for the sol-gel processing of TiO2 films. Layers of up to 800 nm and 2.0 μm were prepared on borosilicate glass and Ni-alloy by multiple coating, respectively. Α refractive index of 2.3 was achieved. The interdependency of parameters such as solvent composition, withdrawal rate, thermal treatment with film quality, thickness and optical properties was investigated. The conditions were optimized for large-area coatings on an industrial scale. The overall process is highly advantageous for industrial production of optical interference filters due to the long-time stability of precursor powders and sols, high optical quality of the resulting films, excellent substrate adhesion and good compatibility with other sol-gel films

Overcoming the Inhibition Effects of Citrate: Precipitation of Ferromagnetic Magnetite Nanoparticles with Tunable Morphology, Magnetic Properties, and Surface Charge via Ferrous Citrate Oxidation

Abstract This study demonstrates how the method of thermally assisted oxidative precipitation in water can be opened for—the so far neglected—metal organic iron(II) complexes (herein: citrate) in order to obtain, in one step, ferromagnetic magnetite nanoparticles, possessing essential ligand properties. Based on a dedicated analysis of the specific precursor in combination with the consideration of known properties of the ligand, it is possible to identify existing inhibition‐attributes of the iron organyl such that these can be overcome. Moreover, they can be exploited in a targeted manner; thus, simply by changing concentrations, a variety of magnetite nanoparticle morphologies with distinct properties can be obtained. In the case of the herein investigated ferrous citrate, three major inhibition effects are identified. While two of them efficiently prevent the formation of magnetite and need to be addressed to be overcome, the third can be exploited to selectively synthesize, for example, relatively stable carboxyl group‐bearing nuclei clusters, exhibiting the properties of magnetically responsive photonic crystals, or relatively large mesocrystals, whose intraparticular magnetic interactions are apparently disturbed

Electrochromic Polymer Ink Derived from a Sidechain-Modified EDOT for Electrochromic Devices with Colorless Bright State

AbstractPrintable organic electrochromic materials are the key component of flexible low power and low weight displays and dynamic shading systems. A vast number of more or less well‐performing materials is reported in the literature, but only a very limited number of them have been tested in an industrially‐relevant environment so far. Upscaling requires simplicity of synthesis, overall sustainability, low cost and compatibility with simple and high throughput wet‐chemical deposition techniques, such as slot‐die coating or inkjet printing. In the present paper, an original process is described that enables the controlled oxidative polymerization of a water insoluble, functionalized 3,4‐ethylene dioxythiophene (EDOT) derivative. This process leads to the formation of an ink that consists solely of active polymeric material (no dispersing agents) and has suitable rheological properties for use in roll‐to‐roll slot‐die coating or ink‐jet printing. The straightforward deposition, followed by a simple thermal treatment, directly yields stable and homogeneous thin films with state‐of‐the‐art electrochromic performance

Applications of periodically structured surfaces on glass

Periodic structures on glass surfaces with dimensions much smaller than a micron can be used in very different applications such as antireflective surfaces and grating couplers for biosensors. The manufacturing technology is briefly described

New Roll‐to‐Roll Processable PEDOT‐Based Polymer with Colorless Bleached State for Flexible Electrochromic Devices

Conjugated electrochromic (EC) polymers for flexible EC devices (ECDs) generally lack a fully colorless bleached state. A strategy to overcome this drawback is the implementation of a new sidechain-modified poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene) derivative that can be deposited in thin-film form in a customized high-throughput and large-area roll-to-roll polymerization process. The sidechain modification provides enhanced EC properties in terms of visible light transmittance change, Δτv = 59% (ΔL* = 54.1), contrast ratio (CR = 15.8), coloration efficiency (η = 530 cm² C−1), and color neutrality (L* = 83.8, a* = −4.3, b* = −4.1) in the bleached state. The intense blue-colored polymer thin films exhibit high cycle stability (10 000 cycles) and fast response times. The design, synthesis, and polymerization of the modified 3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene derivative are discussed along with a detailed optical, electrochemical, and spectroelectrochemical characterization of the resulting EC thin films. Finally, a flexible see-through ECD with a visible light transmittance change of Δτv = 47% (ΔL* = 51.9) and a neutral-colored bleached state is developed

Mechanical Stability of Liquid‐Infused Surfaces Based on Mussel‐Inspired Polydopamine Chemistry

AbstractLiquid‐infused surfaces exhibit remarkable repellency properties toward water, oils, and complex fluids and are widely applied to maintain clean, operational, and high‐performing surfaces in various fields, from the biomedical sector to marine infrastructure. Polydopamine (PDA) forms an ideal base layer for the development of such coatings as it adheres to virtually any substrate and can be chemically modified via amino‐containing molecules to adjust the surface properties. Here, strategies are explored to increase the mechanical stability of such coatings by i) incorporating imidazole during film formation to increase crosslinking, and ii) formation of a composite consisting of the organic PDA and an inorganic siliceous porous coating by infiltration of a preformed porous silica layer with PDA. Both strategies exhibit improved resistance to tangential shear assessed by a sandpaper abrasion test and to dynamic impact assessed by a sand trickle test. These improved mechanical properties are successfully transferred to liquid‐infused surfaces created from such modified PDA base layers. The most durable coatings retain efficient liquid repellency after 25 abrasion cycles, indicating improved resilience in real‐world applications.</jats:p

Antireflective coatings by sol-gel processing: Commercial products and future perspectives

Commercial antireflective coatings prepared by sol–gel processing are compared to MgF2 λ/4 thin films. Their respective optical performance is measured by UV-Vis spectroscopy. Microstructural features as characterized by Scanning Electron Microscopy are correlated to results determined by Ellipsometric Porosimetry. A modified Crockmeter testing procedure employing steel wool as abrasive was used to examine mechanical film stability. Results indicate that MgF2 films can well compete with other porous λ/4 systems, as well as with dense interference multilayer assemblies targeting at superior optical and mechanical properties

Characterization of sol-gel thin films by ellipsometric porosimetry

As an extension of spectral ellipsometry, ellipsometric porosimetry has gained considerable importance for the characterization of porous thin films. The in-situ measurement of sorption facilitates the evaluation of open porosity, pore radius distribution, film backbone refractive index and even elastic properties. Multilayer assemblies and gradients within films can be characterized. These features are especially interesting for sol–gel derived thin films that are commonly composed of aggregated nanoparticles and thus may retain significant porosity after thermal treatment. In this paper the general features of Ellipsometric Porosimetry are highlighted and related to the characterization of selected sol–gel films. The examples range from simple assessments of porosity and pore radius distribution, film backbone analysis to the characterization of multilayer assemblies and systematic changes induced by thermal treatment or leaching phenomena

Sol-Gel Processing of MgF2 Antireflective Coatings

There are different approaches for the preparation of porous antireflective λ/4 MgF2 films from liquid precursors. Among these, the non-aqueous fluorolytic synthesis of precursor solutions offers many advantages in terms of processing simplicity and scalability. In this paper, the structural features and optical performance of the resulting films are highlighted, and their specific interactions with different inorganic substrates are discussed. Due to their excellent abrasion resistance, coatings have a high potential for applications on glass. Using solvothermal treatment of precursor solutions, also the processing of thermally sensitive polymer substrates becomes feasible

BN-hybrid polymer composites: Influence of particle surface functionalization

Boron Nitride (BN) particles were functionalized with vinyl-trimethoxysilane (VTMS) and incorporated into a hybrid polymer (ORMOCER®) resin. The thermal conductivity and mechanical properties of the resulting composite were compared to materials prepared using unmodified particles. Results indicate that the chemical bonding between grain surface and ORMOCER® matrix has a pronounced effect on the final performance of the respective compounds