Films for optical use and methods of making such films
Films for optical use, articles containing such films, methods for making such films, and systems that utilize such films, are disclosed
1 . A method for forming film on a substrate, comprising:
forming a layer of a first material by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the first material, one of the monolayers of the first material being deposited on a first surface of the substrate,
wherein the film comprises the layer of the first material and the substrate comprises a polymer.
2 . The method of claim 1 , wherein depositing the plurality of monolayers of the first material comprises depositing a monolayer of a precursor and exposing the monolayer of the precursor to a reagent to provide a monolayer of the first material.
3 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the reagent chemically reacts with the precursor to form the first material.
4 . The method of claim 3 , wherein the reagent oxidizes the precursor to form the first material.
5 . The method of claim 2 , wherein depositing the monolayer of the precursor comprises introducing a first gas comprising the precursor into a chamber housing the substrate.
6 . The method of claim 5 , wherein a pressure of the first gas in the chamber is about 0.01 to about 100 Torr.
7 . The method of claim 5 , wherein exposing the monolayer of the precursor to the reagent comprises introducing a second gas comprising the reagent into the chamber.
8 . The method of claim 7 , wherein a pressure of the second gas in the chamber is about 0.01 to about 100 Torr.
9 . The method of claim 7 , wherein a third gas is introduced into the chamber after the first gas is introduced and prior to introducing the second gas.
10 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the third gas is inert with respect to the precursor.
11 . The method of claim 9 , wherein the third gas comprises at least one gas selected from the group consisting of helium, argon, nitrogen, neon, krypton, and xenon.
12 . The method of claim 2 , wherein the precursor is selected from the group consisting of tris(tert-butoxy)silanol, (CH 3 ) 3 Al, TiCl 4 , SiCl 4 , SiH 2 Cl 2 , TaCl 3 , AlCl 3 , Hf-ethaoxide and Ta-ethaoxide.
13 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the first material is a dielectric material.
14 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising forming a layer of a second material by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the second material, one of the monolayers of the second material being deposited on the layer of the first material, wherein the second material is different from the first material and the film comprises the layer of the second material.
15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein depositing the plurality of monolayers of the second material comprises depositing a monolayer of a precursor and exposing the monolayer of the precursor to a reagent to provide a monolayer of the second material.
16 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the reagent chemically reacts with the precursor to form the second material.
17 . The method of claim 16 , wherein the reagent oxidizes the precursor to form the second material.
18 . The method of claim 15 , wherein depositing the monolayer of the precursor comprises introducing a first gas comprising the precursor into a chamber housing the substrate.
19 . The method of claim 18 , wherein a pressure of the first gas in the chamber is about 0.01 to about 100 Torr.
20 . The method of claim 18 , wherein exposing the monolayer of the precursor to the reagent comprises introducing a second gas comprising the reagent into the chamber.
21 . The method of claim 20 , wherein a pressure of the second gas in the chamber is about 0.01 to about 100 Torr.
22 . The method of claim 20 , wherein the chamber is purged with a purge gas after the first gas is introduced and prior to introducing the second gas.
23 . The method of claim 22 , wherein the purge gas is inert with respect to the first precursor.
24 . The method of claim 22 , wherein the purge gas comprises at least one gas selected from the group consisting of helium, argon, nitrogen, neon, krypton, and xenon.
25 . The method of claim 15 , wherein the precursor is selected from the group consisting of tris(tert-butoxy)silanol, (CH 3 ) 3 Al, TiCl 4 , SiCl 4 , SiH 2 Cl 2 , TaCl 3 , AlCl 3 , Hf-ethaoxide and Ta-ethaoxide.
26 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the second material is a dielectric material.
27 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising forming a layer of a third material on a surface of the layer of the second material, wherein the third material is different from the second material and the film comprises the layer of the third material.
28 . The method of claim 27 , wherein the third material is the same as the first material.
29 . The method of claim 27 , wherein the layer of the third material is deposited using atomic layer deposition.
30 . The method of claim 27 , further comprising forming a layer of a fourth material on a surface of the layer of the third material, wherein the fourth material is different from the third material and the film comprises the layer of the fourth material.
31 . The method of claim 30 , wherein the fourth material is the same as the second material.
32 . The method of claim 30 , wherein the layer of the fourth material is deposited using atomic layer deposition.
33 . The method of claim 30 , further comprising forming additional layers that are supported by the layer of the fourth material.
34 . The method of claim 33 , where at least some of the additional layers comprise the first or second materials.
35 . The method of claim 33 , wherein the additional layers are formed using atomic layer deposition.
36 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the substrate is an optical component.
37 . The method of claim 1 , further comprising forming a layer of the first material on a second surface of the substrate simultaneously to forming the layer of the first material on the first surface, wherein the second surface is opposite or contiguous with the first surface.
38 . The method of claim 37 , wherein the layer of a first material is formed on the second surface by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the first material, one of the monolayers of the first material being deposited on the second surface of the substrate.
39 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising forming a layer of the second material on a layer of the first material deposited on a second surface of the substrate simultaneously to forming the layer of the second material on the layer of the first material on the first surface, wherein the second surface is opposite or contiguous with the first surface.
40 . The method of claim 39 , wherein the layer of the second material is formed on the layer of the first material deposited on the second surface by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the second material, one of the monolayers of the second material being deposited on a surface of the layer of the first material deposited on the second surface.
41 . The method of claim 1 , wherein while forming the layer of the first material, the substrate has a temperature of about 500° C. or less.
42 . The method of claim 1 , wherein while forming the layer of the first material, the substrate has a temperature of about 300° C. or less.
43 . The method of claim 1 , wherein while forming the layer of the first material, the substrate has a temperature of about 200° C. or less.
44 . The method of claim 1 , wherein while forming the layer of the first material, the substrate has a temperature of about 150° C. or less.
45 . The method of claim 1 , wherein while forming the layer of the first material, the substrate has a temperature of about 80° C. or less.
46 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the polymer is a thermoset polymer.
47 . The method of claim 1 , wherein the polymer is a thermoplastic polymer.
48 . A method for forming a multilayer film on an optical component, comprising:
forming a layer of a first material by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the first material, one of the monolayers of the first material being deposited on a first surface of the optical component; and
forming a layer of a second material by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the second material, one of the monolayers of the second material being deposited on a surface of the layer of the first material,
wherein the multilayer film comprises the layers of the first material and second material and the optical component is a lens.
49 . A method, comprising:
using atomic layer deposition to simultaneously deposit a film on first and second surfaces of a substrate, the first surface being opposite the second surface.
50 . A method, comprising:
using atomic layer deposition to simultaneously deposit a layer of a first material on first and second surfaces of an optical substrate, the first surface being opposite the second surface.
51 . A method, comprising:
using atomic layer deposition to deposit a multilayer film on a surface of a substrate comprising a polymer.
52 . A method for forming a film on a substrate, comprising:
forming a layer of a first material by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the first material, one of the monolayers of the first material being deposited on a first surface of the substrate,
wherein the film comprises the layer of the first material and the substrate comprises a lens.
53 . A method for forming a film on a substrate comprising a curved surface, comprising:
forming a layer of a first material by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the first material, one of the monolayers of the first material being deposited on the curved surface of the substrate,
wherein the film comprises the layer of the first material.
54 . A method for forming a film on a substrate, comprising:
forming a layer of a first material by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the first material, one of the monolayers of the first material being simultaneously deposited on first and second surfaces of the substrate,
wherein the film comprises the layer of the first material and the first surface is opposite the second surface.
55 . A method for forming a film on a substrate, comprising:
forming a layer of a first material by sequentially depositing a plurality of monolayers of the first material, one of the monolayers of the first material being simultaneously deposited on first and second non-coplanar surfaces of the substrate,
wherein the film comprises the layer of the first material and the first surface is contiguous with the second surface.
56 . A method, comprising:
using atomic layer deposition to deposit a multilayer film on a surface of a lens.
57 . A method, comprising:
using atomic layer deposition to deposit a multilayer film on a curved or structured surface.