Electrochromic coatings for smart windows

Electrochromic coatings are finding interesting applications in a wide range of fields. The possibility of controlling the transparency of tungsten oxide (WO3) thin films by the application of small electrical voltages in a reversible way is quite promising and was explored in the work herein reported. Multi-layer films based on WO3 were mainly deposited by reactive dc magnetron sputtering onto glass substrates. The films were analyzed by spectroscopy from the near infrared to the ultraviolet, by the laser triangulation for microtopographic inspection, atomic force microscopy and X-ray diffraction.