Nanostructured Anti-Reflecting and Water-Repellent Surface Coatings is a scalable, nanotechnology-based coating method for imparting perfect, full-color anti-reflection and robust water-repellency to surfaces made of silicon, glass, and some plastics. Its approach combines thin-film manufacturing processes with the ability of block copolymers materials to self-organize at nanometer-scale dimensions, creating a new approach to structuring materials at nanoscale dimensions over arbitrarily large areas. This approach is highly versatile and amenable to different substrates, and has extended the technique to texturing glass and plastics such as kapton, polyimide, PET and Teflon. Antireflection and water repellency are important qualities to endow in solar cells, as they directly affect performance. The ability to endow these properties in glass and plastics significantly broadens the application space to include windows, touch screens and lighting, among many others.
Each year for more than 50 years, R&D Magazine has honored the 100 best innovations in research and development. We are currently accepting applications for the 2017 R&D 100 Awards. Innovators with an exceptional product developed between January 1, 2016 and March 31, 2017 should apply. Submissions close May 12, 2017.
For information on the 55th Annual R&D 100 Awards visit the R&D 100 Conference website.
