A substrate is coated on one face with a thin-film multilayer including at least one metal functional film based on silver or made of silver having a thickness e of between 7 nm and 20 nm inclusive of these values, and two antireflection coatings. The antireflection coatings each include at least one antireflection film. The functional film is placed between the two antireflection coatings. The multilayer includes two discontinuous metal films each having a thickness e of between 0.5 nm and 5 nm inclusive of these values. A lower discontinuous metal film is located between the face and the only or first metal functional film as counted starting from the face and an upper discontinuous metal film located above the only or last metal functional film as counted starting from the face.

A dielectric mirror includes a coating having alternating high and low index layers. The mirror coating has no metallic reflective layer of Al or Ag in certain example embodiments, and may have film side and/or glass side visible reflection of from about 50-90% (more preferably from about 60-80% and most preferably from about 65-75%) and visible transmission of from about 10-50% (more preferably from about 10-40% or 20-40%) in certain example embodiments.

A substrate is coated on one face with a thin-film multilayer including at least one metal functional film based on silver or made of silver having a thickness e of between 7 nm and 20 nm inclusive of these values, and two antireflection coatings each including at least one antireflection film. The functional film is placed between the two antireflection coatings. The multilayer includes an upper discontinuous metal film having a thickness e of between 0.5 nm and 5 nm inclusive of these values. The upper discontinuous metal film is located above the only or last metal functional film as counted starting from the face.

A substrate is coated on one face with a thin-film multilayer including at least one functional metal film based on silver or made of silver having a thickness e of between 7 nm and 20 nm inclusive of these values, and two antireflection coatings each including at least one antireflection film. The functional film is placed between the two antireflection coatings. The multilayer includes a lower discontinuous metal film having a thickness e of between 0.5 nm and 5 nm inclusive of these values. The lower discontinuous metal film is located between the face and the only or first functional metal film as counted starting from the face.

The present invention relates to a transparent substrate comprising a multiple layer coating stack and the use of same in the manufacture of a double glazing unit, wherein the multiple layer coating stack comprises, n functional metal layer, m; and n plus 1 (n+1) dielectric layer, d, wherein the dielectric layers are positioned before and after each functional metal layer, and wherein n is the total number of functional metal layer in the stack counted from the substrate and is greater than or equal to 3; and wherein each dielectric layer comprises one or more layers, characterized in that the geometrical layer thickness of each functional metal layer in the coating stack Gm, is greater than the geometrical layer thickness of each functional metal layer appearing before it in the multiple layer coating stack, that is, Gmi+1>Gm.sub.i wherein i is the position of the functional metal layer in the coating stack counted from the substrate, and wherein for each dielectric layer d located before and after each functional metal layer m, the optical layer thickness of each dielectric layer (opln) is greater than or equal to the optical layer thickness of the dielectric layer (opln?1) positioned before it in the coating stack with the proviso that: twice the optical layer thickness of the first dielectric layer (opl.sub.1) in the coating stack, is less than the optical layer thickness of the second dielectric layer (opl.sub.2) in the coating stack, that is, (2?opl.sub.1)<opl.sub.2; and twice the optical layer thickness of the last dielectric layer (opl.sub.n+1) in the coating stack, is greater than the thickness of the optical layer thickness of the penultimate dielectric layer (opl.sub.n), that is, (opl.sub.n)<(opl.sub.n+1)?2.

A substrate coated on one of its faces with a stack of thin layers having reflection properties in the infrared and/or in solar radiation, including two metallic functional layers, in particular on the basis of silver. Each of the metallic functional layers is disposed between two dielectric coatings. The coating includes at least two absorbent layers which absorb solar radiation in the visible part of the spectrum, which is disposed at least in two different dielectric coatings.

A dielectric mirror includes a coating having alternating high and low index layers. The mirror coating has no metallic reflective layer of Al or Ag in certain example embodiments, and may have film side and/or glass side visible reflection of from about 50-90% (more preferably from about 60-80% and most preferably from about 65-75%) and visible transmission of from about 10-50% (more preferably from about 10-40% or 20-40%) in certain example embodiments.

Method and apparatus for producing metal-coated optical fiber involves feeding a length of glass fiber through a first solution bath so as to plate a first predetermined metal on the glass fiber via electroless deposition. The length of glass fiber is passed continuously from the first solution bath to a second solution bath adapted to plate thereon a second predetermined metal via electrolytic plating such that the optical fiber contacts an electrode only after at least some of the second predetermined metal has been applied. The length of glass fiber may be passed continuously from the second solution bath to a third solution bath adapted to plate thereon a third predetermined metal via electrolytic plating.

Provided is a production method for a plated substrate, comprising: providing a photoreactive bonding agent on a surface of a substrate made of glass or silicon; irradiating the surface of the substrate, on which the photoreactive bonding agent is provided, with light to allow the surface of the substrate and the photoreactive bonding agent to be bonded to each other; after the irradiation, removing by washing the photoreactive bonding agent that is not bonded to the surface of the substrate; after the first washing, providing a catalyst that binds to the photoreactive bonding agent; after the catalyst provision, removing by washing the catalyst that does not bind to the photoreactive bonding agent; and disposing a conductive substance on the photoreactive bonding agent by an electroless plating process after the second washing, the catalyst binding to the photoreactive bonding agent.

A material includes a transparent substrate coated with a stack of thin layers including at least one functional coating including at least one silver-based metal functional layer, and at least one niobium-based metal or nitride functional layer.