Glass substrates coated with a stack of thin layers having reflective properties in the infra-red and/or solar ranges

• US 20040241457A1
• Filed: 06/30/2004
• Published: 12/02/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 12/23/1994
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Saint-Gobain Glass France (Compagnie De Saint-Gobain)
• Original Assignee: Saint-Gobain Glass France (Compagnie De Saint-Gobain)
• Inventors: Macquart, Philippe, Guiselin, Olivier, Rondeau, Veronique
• Granted Patent: US 7,037,577 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 428/432
• CPC Class Codes: B32B 17/10174 Coatings of a metallic or dielectric material on a constituent layer of glass or polymer
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/36 at least one coating being a metal
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3618 Coatings of type glass/inorganic compound/other inorganic layers, at least one layer being metallic
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3626 one layer at least containing a nitride, oxynitride, boronitride or carbonitride
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3634 one layer at least containing carbon, a carbide or oxycarbide
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3639 Multilayers containing at least two functional metal layers
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3644 the metal being silver
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3652 the coating stack containing at least one sacrificial layer to protect the metal from oxidation
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/366 Low-emissivity or solar control coatings
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3681 the multilayer coating being used in glazing, e.g. windows or windscreens
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 1/116 including electrically conducting layers
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/12493 Composite; i.e., plural, adjacent, spatially distinct metal components [e.g., layers, joint, etc.]
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/12542 More than one such component
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/12896 Ag-base component
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/12944 Ni-base component
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/24975 No layer or component greater than 5 mils thick
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/265 1 mil or less

Abstract

A transparent substrate particularly of glass, provided with a stack of thin layers having at least one metallic layer (4) having properties in the infrared range particularly having low emissivity and two coatings having a base of dielectric material located one (8) under and the other (9) over the layer having properties in the infrared range, as well as a protective metallic layer (5) place immediately over an in contact with the layer having properties in the infrared range, characterized in that in order to prevent the modification of properties of the stack, particularly optical and thermal properties, in the case where the substrate is submitted to a thermal treatment of the tempering or bending kind, firstly the second coating (9) having a base of dielectric material, includes a barrier layer for the diffusion of oxygen chosen from the following materials: components of silicon SiO₂, SiO_xC_y, SiO_NN_y, nitrates such as Si₃N₄ or AlN, carbides such as SiC, TiC, CrC, TaC of a thickness of at least 10 nanometers and preferably of at least 20 nanometers, and secondly the layer having properties in the infrared range is directly in contact with the underlying dielectric coating.

Claims

1-23. -23 (Cancelled):

24. A transparent substrate, comprising a stack of thin layers having at elast one layer with properties in the infra-red range, which comprises on a carrier substrate in order:

a) a first undercoating comprising a dielectric material;

b) a layer having properties in the infra-red range;

c) a primer metallic coating, and

d) a second overcoating, comprising dielectric material;

wherein in order to prevent modification of properties of the stack when a carrier substrate thereof is submitted to a thermal treatment of bending or tempering;

i) the first undercoating comprising dielectric material has at least a first barrier layer for the diffusion of alkaline ions and oxygen; and

ii) the second overcoating comprising dielectric material has at least a second barrier layer for the diffusion of oxygen; and

further wherein iii) a first oxide layer is intercalated between the first undercoating and said layer having properties in the infrared range, and a second oxide layer is also intercalated between said primer metallic coating and the second overcoating, said first and second oxide layers being the same or different;

the first undercoating and second overcoating each, independently, being selected from the group consisting of silicon nitride and silicon oxynitride.

25. The transparent substrate of claim 24, wherein the oxide layer intercalated between the first undercoating and the layer having properties in the infra-red range is a ZnO or SnO₂ layer.

26. The transparent substrate of claim 24, wherein the oxide layer intercalated between the primer metallic coating and the second overcoating is a ZnO or SnO₂ layer.

27. The transparent substrate of claim 24, wherein the first undercoating and the second overcoating is a Si₃N₄ layer.

28. The transparent substrate of claim 24, wherein the carrier substrate is glass.

29. The transparent substrate of claim 24, wherein a difference in luminous transmission, TL, after bending or tempering, is at,most 2%, with an emissivity difference of at most 0.01.

30. The transparent substrate of claim 24, wherein said primer metallic coating comprises a metal selected from the group consisting of Nb, Ta, Ti, Cr, and Ni or an alloy of at least two of said metals and has a thickness of at most 2 nm.

31. The transparent substrate of claim 24, wherein the first undercoating comprising dielectric material comprises a ZnO/metallic oxide layer having a thickness of between about 5 and 40 nm.

32. The transparent substrate of claim 24, wherein the first undercoating and the second overcoating are doped by a dopant.

33. The transparent substrate of claim 32, wherein the dopant is present in an amount of at most 2% atomic, compared to amount of silicon.

34. The transparent substrate of claim 32, wherein said dopant is boron or aluminum.

35. A transparent substrate, comprising a stack of thin layers on a carrier substrate, the stack of thin layers comprising:

Si₃N₄/ZnO/Ag/NiCr/ZnO/Si₃N₄

whereby properties of the stack are retained without modification when the carrier substrate is submitted to a thermal treatment of bending or tempering.

36. The transparent substrate of claim 35, wherein the carrier substrate is glass.

37. A transparent substrate, comprising a stack of thin layers on a carrier substrate, the stack of thin layers comprising:

Si₃N₄/ZnO/Ag/NiCr/SnO₂/Si₃N₄.

38. The transparent substrate of claim 37, wherein the carrier substrate is glass.

39. A transparent substrate, comprising a stack of thin layers on carrier substrate, wherein the stack of thin layers comprises:

Si₃N₄·

Al/ZnO/Ag/NiCr/SnO₂/Si₃N₄·

Al.

40. The transparent substrate of claim 39, wherein the carrier substrate is glass.

41. A transparent substrate, comprising a stack of thin layers on a carrier substrate, wherein the stack of thin layers comprises a plurality of layers with properties in the infra-red range, and comprises in order:

a) a first undercoating comprising a dielectric material;

b) a layer having properties in the infra-red range;

c) a primer metallic coating; and

d) a second overcoating, comprising a dielectric material;

wherein in order to prevent modification of properties of the stack when a carrier substrate thereof is submitted to a thermal treatment of bending or tempering;

i) the first undercoating comprising a dielectric material has at least a first barrier layer for the diffusion of alkaline ions and oxygen; and

ii) the second overcoating comprising a dielectric material has at least a second barrier layer for the diffusion of oxygen;

iii) a first oxide layer is intercalated between the first undercoating and said layer having properties in the infra-red range, and a second oxide layer is intercalated between said primer metallic coating and the second overcoating, said first and second oxide layers being the same or different;

the first undercoating and second overcoating each, independently, being selected from the group consisting of silicon nitride and silicon oxynitride; and

wherein a), b), c), d), i), ii) and iii) each, independently and optionally, repeat at least one additional time to provide said plurality of layers in the stack having properties in the infra-red range.

42. The transparent substrate of claim 41, wherein the first oxide layer intercalated between the first undercoating and the layer having properties in the infra-red range is a ZnO or SnO₂ layer.

43. The transparent substrate of claim 41, wherein the second oxide layer intercalated between the primer metallic coating and the second overcoating is a ZnO or SnO₂ layer.

44. The transparent substrate of claim 41, wherein the first undercoating and the second overcoating is a Si₃N₄ layer.

45. The transparent substrate of claim 41, wherein the carrier substrate is glass.

46. The transparent substrate of claim 41, wherein a difference in luminous transmission, TL, after bending or tempering, is at most 2%, with an emissivity difference of at most 0.01.

47. The transparent substrate of claim 41, wherein said primer metallic coating comprises a metal selected from the group consisting of Nb, Ta, Ti, Cr, and Ni or an alloy of at least two of said metals and has a thickness of at most 2 nm.

48. The transparent substrate of claim 41, wherein the first undercoating comprising dielectric material comprises a ZnO/metallic oxide layer having a thickness of between about 5 and 40 nm.

49. The transparent substrate of claim 41, wherein the first undercoating and the second overcoating are doped by a dopant.

50. The transparent substrate of claim 49, wherein the dopant is present in an amount of at most 2% atomic, compared to amount of silicon.

51. The transparent substrate of claim 49, wherein said dopant is boron or aluminum.

52. A transparent substrate, comprising a stack of thin layers on a carrier substrate, the stack of thin layers comprising:

Si₃N₄/ZnO/Ag/NiCr/SnO₂/Si₃N₄/ZnO/Ag/NiCr/SnO₂/Si₃N₄.

53. The transparent substrate of claim 52, wherein the carrier substrate is glass.

54. A transparent substrate, comprising a stack of thin layers on a carrier substrate, wherein the stack of thin layers comprises:

Si₃N₄·

Al/ZnO/Ag/NiCr/SnO₂/Si₃N₄·

Al/ZnO/Ag/NiCr/SnO₂/Si₃N₄·

Al.

55. The transparent substrate of claim 54, wherein the carrier substrate is glass.