Sol Gel Optics Iv

Sol--Gel--Optics encompasses numerous schemes for fabricating optical materials from gels -- materials such as bulk optics, optical waveguides, doped oxides for laser and nonlinear optics, gradient refractive index (GRIN) optics, chemical sensors, environmental sensors, and `smart' windows. Sol--Gel--Optics: Processing and Applications provides in-depth coverage of the synthesis and fabrication of these materials and discusses the optics related to microporous, amorphous, crystalline and composite materials. The reader will also find in this book detailed descriptions of new developments in silica optics, bulk optics, waveguides and thin films. Various applications to sensor and device technology are highlighted. For researchers and students looking for novel optical materials, processing methods or device ideas, Sol--Gel--Optics: Processing and Applications surveys a wide array of promising new avenues for further investigation and for innovative applications. (This book is the first in a new subseries entitled `Electronic Materials: Science and Technology).

Sol-gel processing is a low temperature, low cost wet chemistry route to a range of different materials, particularly glassy and ceramic oxides, including nanoparticles and powders, fibers, thin films and membranes, or monoliths and composites. Thin films and coatings represent by far the most important category of sol-gel derived products with optical, electronic and magnetic functionalities, for example photoresist and dielectric spin-on-glass layers, flat screen displays, anti-reflection, conducting and magnetic disk coatings, as well as photochromic, electrochromic and photovoltaic coatings. Sol-gel derived materials are homogeneous at the molecular level and are a good example of a bottom-up approach to materials synthesis. There is increasing need of new optical and photonic materials with improved performance, where molecular level homogeneity and easy fabrication in film form may be especially convenient, highlighting a decisive advantage of sol-gel over other more established technologies to obtain graded index optical components, solar control coatings, phosphors, glass ceramics or multilayer photonic structures. There is no book available yet which focuses in particular on optical and photonic sol-gel derived materials. This is what makes this book unique at this point for those especially or exclusively interested in optical and photonic functional materials and applications. This book represents an important tool to update scientists and engineers with recent advances in the rapidly evolving field of optical and photonic materials, components and devices. Our target audience are those working in materials science, physics, engineering and chemistry disciplines, in particular academics and researchers working in advanced optical/photonic processing technologies, research and development engineers in high technology industries and research project leaders. This book will also be an essential tool for graduate students pursuing a PhD or even a Master’s degree. Reviews wide range of sol-gel derived coatings including reflective and anti-reflective, self-cleaning, and electrochromic Discusses latest advances in sol-gel derived photonic crystals including one dimensional, two dimensional, and three dimensional structures Addresses key applications in solid state lighting, solar cells, sensors, fiber optics, and magneto-optical devices

Sol-Gel Techniques for Glass Producers and Users provides technological information, descriptions and characterizations of prototypes, or products already on the market, and illustrates advantages and disadvantages of the sol-gel process in comparison to other methods. The first chapter entitled "Wet Chemical Technology" gives a summary of the basic principles of the sol-gel chemistry. The most promising applications are related to coatings. Chapter 2 describes the various "Wet Chemical Coating Technologies" from glass cleaning to many deposition and post-coating treatment techniques. These include patterning of coatings through direct or indirect techniques which have became very important and for which the sol-gel processing is particularly well adapted. Chapter 3 entitled "Bulk Glass Technologies" reports on the preparation of special glasses for different applications. Chapter 4 entitled "Coatings and Materials Properties" describes the properties of the different coatings and the sol-gel materials, fibers and powders. The chapter also includes a section dedicated to the characterization techniques especially applied to sol-gel coatings and products.

This completely updated and expanded second edition stands as a comprehensive knowledgebase on both the fundamentals and applications of this important materials processing method. The diverse, international team of contributing authors of this reference clarify in extensive detail properties and applications of sol-gel science and technology as it pertains to the production of substances, active and non-active, including optical, electronic, chemical, sensor, bio- and structural materials. Essential to a wide range of manufacturing industries, the compilation divides into the three complementary sections: Sol-Gel Processing, devoted to general aspects of processing and recently developed materials such as organic-inorganic hybrids, photonic crystals, ferroelectric coatings, and photocatalysts; Characterization of Sol-Gel Materials and Products, presenting contributions that highlight the notion that useful materials are only produced when characterization is tied to processing, such as determination of structure by NMR, in-situ characterization of the sol-gel reaction process, determination of microstructure of oxide gels, characterization of porous structure of gels by the surface measurements, and characterization of organic-inorganic hybrid; and Applications of Sol-Gel Technology, covering applications such as the sol-gel method used in processing of bulk silica glasses, bulk porous gels prepared by sol-gel method, application of sol-gel method to fabrication of glass and ceramic fibers, reflective and antireflective coating films, application of sol-gel method to formation of photocatalytic coating films, and application of sol-gel method to bioactive coating films. The comprehensive scope and integrated treatment of topics make this reference volume ideal for R&D scientists and engineers across a wide range of disciplines and professional interests.