PHASE CHANGE DEVICE
First Claim
1. An article comprising a transparent substrate upon which has been coated with a very thin layer of a phase-change material exhibiting high resistivity and low reflectance in the amorphous state, and low resistivity and high reflectivity in the crystalline state, wherein the difference between the crystallization temperature of the phase-change material and its melting temperature is in the order of 25°
- C. to 50°
C.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A phase change material is applied as a very thin film to a transparent substrate such as glass, which material when switched from the amorphous to the crystalline state and back again can affect the reflectivity/transmittance of the combined substrate-coating system. When used with glass panels in the fabrication of relatively large area window glass, the change in spectrally selective transmittance can be used to modulate the amount of sunlight passing through the glass, and thus reduce the amount of cooling required for an interior space in the summertime, and the amount of heating required of that same interior space in the wintertime, while also optimizing the use of visible daylight. Exemplary of a suitable phase change material for glass coating is GeSb or BiSn. Heating of the phase change material to initiate a change in phase can be provided by the application of electric energy, such as supplied from a pulsed power supply, or radiant energy, such as from a laser.
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Citations
22 Claims
- 1. An article comprising a transparent substrate upon which has been coated with a very thin layer of a phase-change material exhibiting high resistivity and low reflectance in the amorphous state, and low resistivity and high reflectivity in the crystalline state, wherein the difference between the crystallization temperature of the phase-change material and its melting temperature is in the order of 25°
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22. An insulated glass unit comprising a frame into which two parallel panes of glass are secured in opposing positions, spaced a distance one from the other, wherein, the interior surface of at least one of the panes of glass is coated with a phase change material, and a radiation heat source is positioned within the space between the panes of glass, said radiation heat source mounted to a movable fixture designed to move the radiation source over the coated area, such as to fully subject said coated area to the radiation of the source, when activated.
Specification