New antireflection coatings on silicate glass, deposited from a silicon dioxide sol containing a nonionogenic surfactant and an oligoether based on ethylene oxide

Abstract

Transparent nanoporous thin films with low refractive index (1.23–1.25) were produced on glass substrates by application of a formulation based on a silicon dioxide sol into which two organic compounds, an oligoether based on ethylene oxide and a nonionogenic surfactant, are introduced. It is shown that the antireflection capacity of the nanoporous coating can be substantially raised at comparatively low concentrations of silicon dioxide and organic additives in the sol by making higher the rate at which the formulation is applied to the substrate.