Touch Screens / ITO Sputtering

Touchscreens are transparent switches that are used in front of electronic displays. They enable users to work interactively with software in a more intuitive manner than with separate or conventional keyboards.

The traditional construction for a resistive touchscreen consists of two layers of polyester film, each coated on one side with a transparent conductive coating usually Indium Tin Oxide (ITO). The conductive layers face each other but are separated by clear spacer/UV dots that have been printed in a defined array, these layers are affixed with optically clear adhesive. The panel can then be mounted onto a polycarbonate or glass rigid back panel, or directly onto the display itself. Of the two layers of polyester the outer surface is usually hard coated and may have antiglare properties, the inner layer of polyester can be either hard coated or heat stabilised polyester film, this is dependent on the end user specification.

MacDermid Autotype offers a range of heat stabilised and hard coated polyester films that offer excellent receptivity to ITO sputtering. The hard coated films are designed specifically for display applications. The hard coat not only offers excellent cosmetic clarity and quality but is available in either an antiglare or a gloss finish. The hard coat surface also protects the film from scratches, scuffs and chemicals but is flexible enough to be embossed. For further details on these products see the product information section on Autostat for heat stabilised films and Autoflex for hard coated films.