The embodiments herein relate to electrochromic stacks, electrochromic devices, and methods and apparatus for making such stacks and devices. In various embodiments, an anodically coloring layer in an electrochromic stack or device is fabricated to include a heterogeneous structure, for example a heterogeneous composition and/or morphology. Such heterogeneous anodically coloring layers can be used to better tune the properties of a device.

The embodiments herein relate to electrochromic stacks, electrochromic devices, and methods and apparatus for making such stacks and devices. In various embodiments, an anodically coloring layer in an electrochromic stack or device is fabricated to include nickel tungsten tantalum oxide (NiWTaO). This material is particularly beneficial in that it is very transparent in its clear state.

A method and a system for film deposition, the system comprising a substrate and a negatively biased target, the target being mounted on a magnetron sputtering cathode and located at a distance from the substrate, wherein a laser beam from a pulsed laser is focused on the target, thereby triggering a magnetron plasma or ejecting vaporized and ionized material from the target in an existing magnetron plasma, the magnetron plasma sputtering material from the target depositing on the substrate.

In a method of forming a metallic material with a multimodal microstructure, nickel is deposited on a substrate having a patterned surface comprising two materials having differing microstructure. The resulting materials may desirably be utilized in semiconductor devices or microelectromechanical (MEMS) devices.

Various embodiments herein relate to electrochromic devices and electrochromic device precursors, as well as methods and apparatus for fabricating such electrochromic devices and electrochromic device precursors. In certain embodiments, the electrochromic device or precursor may include one or more particular materials such as a particular electrochromic material and/or a particular counter electrode material. In various implementations, the electrochromic material includes tungsten titanium molybdenum oxide. In these or other implementation, the counter electrode material may include nickel tungsten oxide, nickel tungsten tantalum oxide, nickel tungsten niobium oxide, nickel tungsten tin oxide, or another material.

Method for producing a positive electrode for a solid-state lithium microbattery comprising the following successive steps: supplying of a substrate made of ceramic, glass or silicon, locally covered with a metal layer, depositing of a cathodic layer made of a positive electrode material, for example made of mixed lithium oxide, the cathodic layer having a thickness greater than 1 μm, a first portion of the cathodic layer covering the substrate and a second portion of the cathodic layer covering the metal layer, intended to form the positive electrode, carrying out of a heat treatment at a temperature greater than or equal to 400° C., on the cathodic layer, in such a way as to crystallise the second portion of the cathodic layer in order to form a positive electrode, and in such a way as to delaminate the first portion of the cathodic layer.

A method for regulating color of a hard coating, including the following steps: providing an amorphous alloy layer; forming an amorphous metal oxide layer on a surface of the amorphous alloy layer to stack the amorphous metal oxide layer on the amorphous alloy layer, so that the amorphous metal oxide layer and the amorphous alloy layer together form the hard coating, wherein a band gap of the amorphous metal oxide layer is in a range from 2 eV to 5 eV, and the color of the hard coating is capable of varying within the visible light spectrum depending on thickness of the amorphous metal oxide layer; and controlling the thickness of the amorphous metal oxide layer in the formation of the amorphous metal oxide layer to obtain the amorphous metal oxide layer of a predetermined color. A hard coating and a method for preparing the same are also provided.

The present disclosure provides a colored glass and a preparation method thereof. The colored glass comprises a glass substrate, layer Aed structure and a Ti alloy layer, wherein the layered structure and the Ti alloy layer are laminated on the surface of the glass substrate; the layered structure comprises alternately stacked layer A and layer B; the layer A is a SiC or NiO layer; the layer B is an MN layer, a GaN layer, a ZrO.sub.2 layer or an Nb.sub.2O.sub.5 layer; the layer A is in contact with the glass substrate, the layer B is in contact with the Ti alloy layer. The color of the glass is controlled by adjusting the thickness of the layer A and the layer B in the layered structure. The Ti alloy layer has high reflectivity, which can make the colored glass bright in color, and has a certain protective and corrosion-resistant effect.

Conventional electrochromic devices frequently suffer from poor reliability and poor performance. Improvements are made using entirely solid and inorganic materials. Electrochromic devices are fabricated by forming an ion conducting electronically-insulating interfacial region that serves as an IC layer. In some methods, the interfacial region is formed after formation of an electrochromic and a counter electrode layer. The interfacial region contains an ion conducting electronically-insulating material along with components of the electrochromic and/or the counter electrode layer. Materials and microstructure of the electrochromic devices provide improvements in performance and reliability over conventional devices.

Conventional electrochromic devices frequently suffer from poor reliability and poor performance. Improvements are made using entirely solid and inorganic materials. Electrochromic devices are fabricated by forming an ion conducting electronically-insulating interfacial region that serves as an IC layer. In some methods, the interfacial region is formed after formation of an electrochromic and a counter electrode layer. The interfacial region contains an ion conducting electronically-insulating material along with components of the electrochromic and/or the counter electrode layer. Materials and microstructure of the electrochromic devices provide improvements in performance and reliability over conventional devices.