Anti-Reflective Coatings for CRTs by Sol-Gel Process

Abstract

Anti-reflective and electromagnetic shielding double-layered coatings were developed for cathode ray tubes (CRTs) by wet chemical process. An outer SiO₂ layer is formed over a porous inner tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) particle layer. ITO particles used in the inner layer lower the sheet resistance below 10³ohm/sq. and an electromagnetic shielding property is attained. To improve the abrasion wear resistance of the film, the structure of the film and hydrolysis-polymerization condition of tetraethoxy-silane (TEOS) are estimated. An outer SiO₂ layer component penetrates into the inner layer and adheres to the glass surface. As the extent of hydrolysis of TEOS proceeds and the molecular weight of hydrolyzed TEOS becomes small, the abrasion wear resistance of the film enhances. The relation between the curing condition of the film and surface resistance of the film is investigated. The surface resistance of the film lowers by curing the film in reductive atmosphere. The transmittance of the film in the near-infrared region shows that the lowering of surface resistance of the film is caused by the increase of carrier concentration of ITO particles. The double layered coatings are successfully applied to the panel glass for CRTs on an industrial-scale.