Glazing panel

• US 6,562,490 B2
• Filed: 12/20/1999
• Issued: 05/13/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 12/18/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Asahi Glass Company, Limited (AGC, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Asahi Glass Company, Limited (AGC, Inc.)
• Inventors: Decroupet, Daniel, Aomine, Nobutaka, Takeda, Satoshi, Noda, Kazuyoshi, Ebisawa, Junichi
• Primary Examiner(s): Jones, Deborah
• Assistant Examiner(s): Piziali, Andrew T
• Application Number:
  US09/466,786
• Publication Number:
  US 20030012963A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,240 Days
• Field of Search: 428/426, 428/428, 428/432, 428/336, 428/469, 428/615, 428/622, 428/673, 428/698, 428/701, 428/216, 428/448, 428/450, 428/472, 428/697, 428/702, 427/165, 427/372.2
• US Class Current: 428/697
• 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 17/3639 Multilayers containing at least two functional metal layers
• CPC Class Codes: C03C 17/3642 the multilayer coating containing a metal layer
• 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: C03C 2217/73 Anti-reflective coatings with specific characteristics
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/12792 Zn-base component
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/12896 Ag-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 glazing panel carrying a coating stack comprises in sequence at least:

a glass substrate

a base antireflective layer

an infra-red reflecting layer, and

a top antireflective layer

and is characterized in that at least one of the antireflective layers comprises at least one mixed oxide layer which comprises an oxide which is a mixture of Zn and at least one additional material X, in which the atomic ratio X/Zn is greater than or equal to 0.12 and in which X is one or more of the materials selected from the group comprising the elements of groups 2a, 3a, 5a, 4b, 5b, 6b of the periodic table. The glazing panel exhibits a combination of advantageous properties, particularly thermal stability.

Claims

1. A glazing panel carrying a coating stack comprising in sequence at least:

a glass substrate

a base antireflective layer

an infra-red reflecting layer, and

a top antireflective layer

characterised in that at least one of the antireflective layers comprises at least one mixed oxide layer which comprises an oxide which is a mixture of Zn and at least one additional material X, in which the atomic ratio X/Zn is greater than or equal to 0.12 and in which X is one or more of the materials selected from the group consisting of Al, Cr, Si, B, Mg and Ga.

2. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1 comprising in sequence at least:

a glass substrate

a base antireflective layer

an infra-red reflecting layer

a central antireflective layer

an infra-red reflecting layer

a top antireflective layer

characterised in that at least one of the antireflective layers comprises at least one mixed oxide layer which comprises an oxide which is a mixture of Zn and at least one additional material X, in which the atomic ratio X/Zn is greater than or equal to 0.12 and in which X is one or more of the materials selected from the group consisting of Al, Cr, Si, B, Mg and Ga.

3. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which X is Al.

4. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which the glazing panel is a heat treatable or substantially haze free heat treated glazing panel.

5. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which the at least one mixed oxide layer has a geometrical thickness greater than or equal to 50 Å

.

6. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which each of the base antireflective layer and the top antireflective layer comprises at least one mixed oxide layer which comprises an oxide which is a mixture of Zn and at least one additional material X, in which the atomic ratio X/Zn is greater than or equal to 0.12 and in which X is one or more of the materials selected from the group consisting of Al, Cr, Si, B, Mg and Ga.

7. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 2, in which the central antireflective layer comprises at least one mixed oxide layer which comprises an oxide which is a mixture of Zn and at least one additional material X, in which the atomic ratio X/Zn is greater than or equal to 0.12 and in which X is one or more of the materials selected from the group consisting of Al, Cr, Si, B, Mg and Ga.

8. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which the atomic ratio X/Zn of the mixed oxide layer is within the range 0.12-1.

9. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which the atomic ratio X/Zn of the mixed oxide layer is within the range 0.15-0.6.

10. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which the atomic ratio X/Zn of the mixed oxide layer is within the range 0.2-0.5.

11. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which the base antireflective layer comprises

a layer adjacent to the substrate comprising a nitride of aluminium or a nitride of silicon or a mixture thereof and

an overlying layer comprising the mixed oxide layer.

12. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which the top antireflective layer comprises

the mixed oxide and

an overlying layer comprising a nitride of aluminium or a nitride of silicon or a mixture thereof.

13. A glazing panel in accordance with claim 1, in which the glazing panel is a heat treatable or substantially haze free heat treated glazing panel and in which heat treatment of the heat treatable glazing panel to form the substantially haze free heat treated glazing panel provokes an increase of the value of TL of the glazing panel of at least 2.5%.

14. A method of manufacturing a glazing panel having a haze of less than about 0.5 comprising the step of subjecting a glazing panel in accordance with claim 1 to a heat treatment process at at least 570°

C.