The Uses Of Conductive Glass
Conductive glass… yes, glass that conducts electricity! What is this magic we speak of? Well, it’s a ‘thing’ and it’s a well used ‘thing’…
How do you make glass conductive?
Strictly speaking, the glass remains unconductive. But, by depositing a thin film of a transparent coating oxide you can make the glass surface conductive. At Diamond Coatings, one of our specialities is working with Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), and ITO glass is one of our most widely used products.
As you may have guessed, ITO is both transparent and conductive and can be deposited on a variety of substrates, such as plastics and glass. ITO conductive glass is used for a variety of applications, some of which we detail below.
ITO Conductive Glass Applications
We have to start with a touchscreen as this is a common use, but also one that helps illustrate why conductive glass is used. When a layer of ITO is deposited onto a glass screen, the device has the ability to register location and gesture of touch – this is because the human touch has an element of conductivity, which is picked up by the charged ITO screen.
These touchscreens are of course everywhere, from military and medical environments, to retail checkouts and even your cellphone or tablet. If you ever wondered how your phone was so clever, now you know!
Another really good example of conductive glass in use is in heated windows. The thin film of ITO can generate a small charge which produces heat and demists windows, almost instantly. These heated screens are in use in planes and trains and also more frequently these days in luxury cars.
Other uses of ITO coated glass
Smart windows now utilise ITO coated glass to great effect – literally. The electrically charged glass can offer total privacy or varying levels of opacity.
ITO coated glass is also used in the production of OLED screens, cinema projection glass and smart freezer doors (as seen in supermarkets). The medical and R&D industries also use ITO coated glass display equipment as well as ITO coated microscope slides and coverslips for electron microscopy.
Get in touch…
If you would like to know more about our Indium Tin Oxide coating services or have a specific project in mind, please get in touch with us.
