What is Conductive Glass?
Transparent conductive glass possesses both transparency and electrical conductivity. It's often used in applications requiring a combination of these properties, such as touchscreens, displays, solar cells, and architectural glass.
Conductive glass consists of a glass substrate coated with a thin layer of transparent conductive material including indium tin oxide. Other materials like graphene, carbon nanotubes, and silver nanowires are also being explored as alternatives to conductive glass.
The conductive layer on the glass allows for transmitting electrical current while maintaining the glass's transparency to visible light. This conductivity is necessary for applications like touchscreens, where the conductive glass layer enables the detection of touch inputs by sensing changes in electrical capacitance.
The deposition of the conductive layer onto the glass substrate can be done through various techniques, including sputtering, Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD), or inkjet printing. These methods ensure the formation of a uniform and continuous conductive layer.
Conductive glass offers several advantages. It provides a transparent and electrically conductive surface, allowing for the creation of interactive and visually appealing devices. It also provides for integrating electronic components directly onto the glass, enabling the development of thin and lightweight electronic devices.
Overall, conductive glass plays a crucial role in various industries, particularly in electronic devices, where the combination of transparency and electrical conductivity is necessary.
Conductive Glass
Conductive glass is a material that is commonly used for applications that require electrical conductivity. These applications include Electro-optic devices and Electrochemical applications.
ITO Coated Glass
ITO coated glass is one of the most common materials used for semiconductor oxide electrodes. These 
coatings are highly conductive and transparent. They can be used in applications such as LCD and OLED screens.
Indium tin oxide (ITO) is an N-type semiconductor that exhibits excellent transmittance and conductivity. It is widely applied in various electronic applications, including solar cells, LCDs, touch screen devices, and flat panel displays.
ITO coated glass is made by depositing a thin, uniform layer of ITO on a glass substrate. This layer is typically applied by physical vapor deposition, but can also be applied using liquid phase deposition. The thickness of the film is usually from 50nm to 200nm. However, the thickness can be customized.
During the coating process, the substrate is vacuumed to ensure a smooth surface. This allows the coating to be deposited with an optimal combination of conductivity and transparency.
ITO coated glasses are used for a variety of applications, but are most commonly applied in the electronics and medical industries. These coatings have many advantages, including high translucency, low sheet resistance, and high transitivity.
ITO coated glasses are often used in organic/inorganic heterojunction solar cells. A silicon dioxide passivation layer is deposited between the ITO layer and the borosilicate glass surface. The silicon dioxide provides a chemically inert, passivating layer that enhances the longevity of the ITO coated glass plate.
Silicon dioxide is a passivating layer that improves the electrical conductivity of the ITO coated glass plate. This improves the charge separation processes and increases the life expectancy of the ITO coated glass plate.
Because of its excellent conductive properties, ITO coated glasses are widely used as electrodes in solar cells. Among the most common applications of ITO coated glasses are in CdTe and Schottky solar cells. As the market for ITO coated glass continues to expand, technological advancements and cost reductions are driving innovation and adoption.
ITO is also used in cell phone screens, in heated windows, and as a smart window. There are many industries that use ITO coated glass, including medical and R&D. But due to limited availability and increasing cost, players are now searching for alternatives.
Low E glass
Low E conductive glass is a type of glass that can protect your home and furniture from harmful ultraviolet light. In addition, it can keep your energy bills down. This glass has a special thin-film metallic coating that is applied to the surface. It also reduces the amount of heat re-radiated from the glass. Consequently, your home can be more comfortable.
There are three main types of low e coatings. Currently, sputter-coated low-E coatings are multilayered and complex designs, providing low visible light reflection and high temperature control.
Another type of low-E coating is the hard coating. This coating is applied to the surface #4. Compared to a soft coat, it is more effective. However, this type of low-E coating is not cost-effective.
The first type of low-E coating was a gold thin film. This technology was widely used in the early 1970s. But in recent years, silver-based thin films have emerged as a viable option for Low E coatings. While silver-based low-E technologies have developed very fast over the past 30 years, this technology still has some technical aspects to be considered.
The sputtering process is the most popular method in the low-E coating industry. This method provides a high level of flexibility and precision. Unlike the pyrolytic method, sputter-coated low-E is usually applied independently of the glass production process.
Today, 90% of low-E window coatings are manufactured using the sputtering method. Besides reducing the heat transmittance of the glass, sputter-coated low-E can reflect long-wave radiation back into the structure during cooler periods.
Although the benefits of using a low-E coating on a glass are obvious, it is also important to think about its costs. Assuming the average cost of heating and cooling a building in Miami is $8000 a year, you will see a considerable reduction if you have a low-E window.
While the low-E coating reduces the emissivity of the glass, it also affects its visual appearance. It can block UV light, and reflect far infrared radiation directly. For example, a typical double-silver-based low-E coating glass has a reflectance of around 70%. If the sun is strong and the outdoor temperature is higher, you will want to have a higher SHGC (Solar Heat Gain Coefficient).
Whether you are considering a soft or hard low-E coating, it is crucial to think about the overall U-value. Soft-coat Low-E glass has a higher overall U-value and better UV protection.
Electro-optic devices
Conductive glass is glass that is coated with a conductive film on its surface. These films are used in a variety of applications including electro-optical devices. The conductivity of the glass depends on its thickness, and its mechanical strength. A high-quality conductive glass usually has a higher electrical conductivity and better resistance.
Fluorine Doped Tin Oxide (FTO) is an extremely conductive material. It has excellent optical properties and is widely used in optical devices. As a result, FTO is suitable for energy-saving windows, thin film solar cells, and optoelectronic components. However, this material must have good reflectivity to infrared light. This is achieved through a pyrolytic on-line electric conductive coating.
Fluorine-doped tin oxide has low surface resistivity and is less susceptible to degradation in the presence of moisture. In addition, it has a large band gap of around 4 eV. ITO is also a semiconducting material and is commonly used in light-emitting diodes. Both materials are used in liquid crystal displays.
Conductive glass for electro-optic devices typically has a higher electrical conductivity. The temperature has a significant effect on the dielectric constant. At a higher temperature, the dielectric constant monotonically decreases. However, there is a positive relationship between the electrical conductivity and the temperature.
Conductive glass for electro-optic applications is usually used in combination with a transparent film to improve its light transmission. For example, an ITO-PET film is often used as an anode in OLEDs. When used in conjunction with other conductive films, the combined system can be fabricated into flexible OSCs. Another application is in IR-mirrors.
An indium tin oxide (ITO) alloy has very low surface resistance. Therefore, it is used in touch screens, organic light-emitting diodes, and LCD-displays. In addition, it has a large refractive index and is optically transparent.
ITO can be coated on glass with an index of refraction of 1.359. The optical bandgap of the deposited layer is 3.47 eV. This is important for electro-optical devices.
Indium tin oxide can be used as a transparent electrode for organic light-emitting diodes. Also, its chemical stability makes it a suitable substrate for thin film solar cells.
Electrochemical applications
Electrically conducting glass is used for a wide range of purposes. For example, it is used to de-ice windows on aircraft such as high-altitude bombers. It is also used for electrical resistors and heating elements. Conductive glasses are also used for burglar alarms and glazing openings in other aircraft.
Conductive glass has recently been introduced as a new material for a variety of applications. It offers unique optical properties. Some of the potential applications include large-area windows, solar panels, cooking utensils, and aircraft windshields.
In addition to its optical characteristics, conductive glass offers other desirable properties. For example, it has high mechanical strength and a compact isotropic microstructure. Furthermore, it is able to withstand high temperatures, making it suitable for use in a variety of applications. The low electrical resistance and thermal resistance make it an ideal electrode for a range of electroanalytical measurements.
Another interesting property is that it is chemically resistant. This makes it suitable for many tests, including those involving impurities. However, its operating temperature and resistance limit its application in some areas. Therefore, a number of approaches have been investigated to add conductivity to oxide glasses.
One strategy is to increase the ionic conductivity of the glass matrix by adding metallic elements. Another method is to modify the composition of the glass. Alternatively, a solid-in-solid composite of the glass and the conductive phase can be incorporated.
An alternative approach to endowing oxide glasses with electrical conductivity is to introduce conductive carbon phases. One-dimensional carbon phases, such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and carbon nanofibers (CNFs), are used in a wide variety of composites. These conductive layers provide a mechanical strengthening and electrical conductivity.
Earlier strategies to impart electrical conductivity to oxide glasses included a solid-in-solid composite of glass and conductive phase. The highest room-temperature electrical conductivity could be achieved by this approach. Nevertheless, the density of these composites is limited. Moreover, the manufacturing cost of these materials is also low.
A number of studies have examined the origin of metallic glass formation. These studies include Demetriou MD, Na JH, and Mott NF. Similarly, research has been conducted on the behavior of electrode materials on silicon or glass substrates.
Video: Learn About Conductive Glass Substrates
