In a method for producing a biocidal glass surface of a soda-lime glass, a glass surface of a soda-lime glass is indirectly or directly contacted with silver, silver salt, or silver ions and directly or indirectly heated using at least one laser beam of a laser such that an ion exchange of sodium ions from the soda-lime glass with silver ions of the silver ions or from the silver or the silver salt results and silver ions of the silver ions deposit in the region of the glass surface. Before being heated, the glass surface is coated with a transfer support including a layer of silver and a protective layer covering the silver layer, such that the protective layer directly contacts the glass surface, the glass surface then being heated using the laser. Also, a soda-lime glass having a biocidal glass surface is produced by the method.

Methods for increasing the hydrolytic resistance of a glass article are disclosed. According to one embodiment, the method includes providing a glass article with a pre-treatment hydrolytic titration value. Thereafter, the glass article is thermally treated at a treatment temperature greater than a temperature 200 C less than a strain temperature of the glass article for a treatment time greater than or equal to about 0.25 hours such that, after thermally treating the glass article, the glass article has a post-treatment hydrolytic titration value that is less than the pre-treatment hydrolytic titration value.

A thin glass article is provided that has a first face, a second face, one or more edges joining the first and second faces, and a thickness between the first and second faces, where the faces and the one or more edges together form an outer surface of the thin glass article. The thin glass article has an ion-exchanged surface layer on its outer surface. The ion-exchanged surface layer is non-uniform, wherein the non-uniform ion-exchanged surface layer has an associated compressive surface stress which varies between a minimum and a maximum value over the outer surface and/or a depth of layer which varies between a minimum and a maximum value over the outer surface. A method for producing a thin glass article and a use of a thin glass article are also provided.

A device for inducing by thermal poling a spatially controlled refractive index gradient inside at least one amorphous inorganic material to be treated, includes a structured electrode arranged on the surface or in proximity to the surface of the material to be treated; and at least one dielectric material. The structured electrode includes at least one conductive zone and at least one non-conductive zone and it is confined between the amorphous inorganic material to be treated and the dielectric material.

A method for joining an optical part made of quartz glass and a supporting part made of ceramic includes forming a metal layer on a surface of the supporting part by electroless plating, polishing the formed metal layer with a polishing pad to form a first smoothed face on the supporting part surface, polishing a surface of the optical part with the polishing pad to form a second smoothed face, cleaning the first smoothed face and the second smoothed face with ultrasonic cleaning water, forming a first metal film on the first smoothed face by vapor deposition and forming a second metal film on the second smoothed face by vapor deposition, and joining the first metal film and the second metal film to each other by interatomic joining by atomic diffusion between the faces at which the first metal film and the second metal film contact with each other.

A method for preparing a laminate substrate for a light emitting device includes providing a glass substrate having a refraction index, at 550 nm, of between 1.45 and 1.65, coating a glass frit having a refractive index, at 550 nm, of at least 1.7 onto the glass substrate, firing the resulting frit coated glass substrate at a temperature above the Littleton temperature of the glass frit thereby forming a first high index enamel layer, coating a metal oxide layer onto the first high index enamel layer, and firing the resulting coated glass substrate at a temperature above the Littleton temperature of the glass frit, thereby making react the metal oxide with the underlying first high index enamel layer and forming a second high index enamel layer with a plurality of spherical voids embedded in the upper section of the second high index enamel layer near the interface with air.

A method for forming a laminated glass article with a ceramic phase, such as a beta-spodumene phase, located at least at the junctures between a glass core and directly adjacent glass clad layers, and in some embodiments located throughout the laminated glass article. In some embodiments, a method is disclosed herein for forming a beta-spodumene glass-ceramic sheet, or a laminated glass article having a ceramic phase, or a laminated glass article having a beta-spodumene glass-ceramic, is disclosed.

A nanocomposite includes: a matrix phase; and a functional area disposed in the matrix phase. The functional area contains monocrystal fine particles.

A method of making a copper-doped glass comprising placing a target glass in a container, placing a target glass in a container, surrounding the target glass with a powder mixture comprised of fused silica (SiO.sub.2) powder and copper sulfide (Cu.sub.2S) powder, such that both the target glass and the surrounding powder are contained in the container, and heating the container and the target glass and the surrounding powder mixture to a temperature of between 800 C. and 1150 C.

The present invention relates to a chemically strengthened glass having a first principal surface and a second principal surface facing the first principal surface, at least a portion of the first principal surface being chemically strengthened, wherein the depth of a compressive stress layer in at least a portion of the first principal surface continuously changes. This chemically strengthened glass can be suitably used in an application in which chemical strengthening characteristics that differ among different regions in the same plane are desired in a chemically strengthened glass.