Ultra-thin flexible glass with a thickness of 100 µm or less offers new opportunities in high-end electronics and optics. It enables the development of thin, light, robust, curved and bendable devices. The ultra-thin glass is bendable, dimensionally and thermally stable and more chemically resistant than polymers, ideal for high-quality functional layers and layer materials.
The Fraunhofer Institute for Electron Beam and Plasma Technology FEP (Fraunhofer FEP) specialises in the development and integration of thin-film coating processes for ultra-thin glass. From feasibility studies to the development of customised, ultra-thin layers and associated processes, right through to licensing and knowledge transfer, the institute's expertise is at your disposal. Fraunhofer FEP offers investigations of sheet-to-sheet and roll-to-roll deposition processes to enable the application of ultra-thin glass in innovative solutions, e.g. in the automotive sector, for smart surfaces, in the photovoltaic sector or in building integration.
The Fraunhofer FEP uses sputtering technology to deposit diverse inorganic layers (such as Al, Si, SiO2, TiO2, ITO). The properties of the layers, such as their electrical conductivity or optical properties such as transmittance and reflectivity, can be specifically adjusted. The Institute is also working on the deposition of homogeneous layers based on complex layer stacks (edge filters, anti-reflective coatings, transparent electrodes).
To illustrate the diverse opportunities offered by these coating technologies, including pre-treatment and post-treatment, the Fraunhofer FEP will be presenting a coated, laminated ultra-thin glass at glasstec 2024.
