PROGRESS IN LARGE-AREA GLASS COATINGS BY HIGH-RATE SPUTTERING

This article reports on the progress of large-area glass coating under vacuum by high-rate cathode sputtering triggered by the introduction of Germany's new energy conservation regulation for buildings. The mai n content of the new regulation and its requirements on low-emissivity (low-e) coated insulated glazing are briefly reviewed. Different low- e coatings are compared and new developments in sputtered low-e coatin gs are discussed.In addition, the impact on coating systems design and recent advances in reliable and are-free deposition of dielectric fil ms are reviewed.