International. Scientists report an easy atmospheric process for making ultra-low refractive index porous coatings with hollow silica nanostructures similar in appearance to blackberry.
At present, intensive research efforts are directed towards the development of new high-quality coatings with ultra-low refractive index. The coatings were manufactured using a sol-gel method catalyzed by a single-step base using 1H, 1H, 2H, 2H-perfluoroocyltrimetoxisilane (POTS) and tetraethyl orthosilicate (TEOS) as coprecursors.
Ultra-low refractive index coatings could be obtained without any pre-treatment (such as HF etching on glass substrates) or aftertreatment (such as calcination to remove the template), making it suitable for processing over large areas.
Compared with the previous methods, the procedure of this technique is simpler and more environmentally friendly. The refractive indices of the coatings could be adjusted from 1.08 to 1.17. We investigated the effect of POTS amounts on the refractive index of coatings.
Specifically, a possible particle growth mechanism of fluorine-containing hollow silica nanoparticle (FHSN) was proposed. In addition, water-repellent properties were also investigated. Ultra-low refractive index coatings with porous silica microstructures have the advantages of abundant porosity, therefore promising to find potential applications in materials stored in energy and porous medium.
Source: www.sciencedirect.com
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