US 11,714,212 B1
Conformal optical coatings for non-planar substrates
Timothy M. Gustafson, Santa Clara, CA (US); Isamu Konishiike, Yokohama (JP); Ligang Wang, San Jose, CA (US); Ryozo Fukuzaki, Kobe (JP); and Andrej Halabica, San Jose, CA (US)
Assigned to Apple Inc., Cupertino, CA (US)
Filed by Apple Inc., Cupertino, CA (US)
Filed on Sep. 10, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/472,454.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/078,269, filed on Sep. 14, 2020.
Int. Cl. G02B 1/118 (2015.01); G02B 1/113 (2015.01); C23C 16/455 (2006.01); C23C 16/02 (2006.01); C23C 16/56 (2006.01); C23C 16/40 (2006.01)
CPC G02B 1/113 (2013.01) [C23C 16/0272 (2013.01); C23C 16/402 (2013.01); C23C 16/403 (2013.01); C23C 16/45536 (2013.01); C23C 16/56 (2013.01); G02B 1/118 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An antireflection optical device, comprising:
a curved, polymeric substrate; and
an antireflection coating formed on a surface of a curved portion of the curved, polymeric substrate, wherein the antireflection coating includes:
at least one conformal dielectric layer formed on the curved portion of the substrate, wherein each conformal dielectric layer is formed by atomic layer deposition, and wherein the at least one conformal dielectric layer includes a first dielectric layer and a second dielectric layer, and wherein the first dielectric layer has a first index of refraction and the second dielectric layer has a second index of refraction, the first index of refraction being different than the second index of refraction; and
an aluminum oxide nanostructure formed directly on a surface of the at least one conformal dielectric layer most distal from the substrate, wherein the aluminum oxide nanostructure includes a mixture of aluminum oxide, aluminum hydroxide, and aluminum oxide hydroxide.
 
8. An antireflection optical device, comprising:
a curved, polymeric substrate;
at least one dielectric layer formed on a curved portion of the curved, polymeric substrate, wherein each dielectric layer is formed using atomic layer deposition;
an adhesion layer between the at least one dielectric layer and the curved, polymeric substrate; and
a nanostructure of aluminum oxide formed directly on a surface of the at least one dielectric layer furthest from the substrate, wherein the nanostructure is formed from a layer of aluminum oxide deposited on the at least one dielectric layer that is placed in a heated water-based fluid with a temperature of at least about 50° C. for a time of at least about 5 minutes.
 
13. An antireflection optical device, comprising:
a curved, polymeric substrate; and
an antireflection coating formed on a surface of a curved portion of the curved, polymeric substrate, wherein the antireflection coating includes:
at least one conformal dielectric layer formed on the curved portion of the substrate, wherein each conformal dielectric layer is formed by atomic layer deposition; and
an aluminum oxide nanostructure formed directly on a second surface of the at least one dielectric layer that is most distal from the substrate;
wherein the antireflection coating has an average reflectance of at most about 0.05% in a wavelength range of 400 nm to 700 nm at an angle of incidence between 0° and 30° across the surface of the curved, polymeric substrate.