PDLC smart glass is composed of :
Outermost panels of normal float glass (or sometimes acrylic) sandwiched around:
Inner panels of optically clear PET plastic (polyethylene terephthalate), sandwiched around:
ITO (Indium Tin Oxide) which is a transparent conductor, sandwiched around:
a PDLC core comprised of liquid crystal droplets, suspended in a polymer.
How does PDLC smart glass work?
With no applied voltage, the liquid crystals are randomly oriented and scatter the light which enters. When an electrical signal is applied, the liquid crystals orient themselves parallel to each other, allowing light through.
What is smart glass comprised?
Smart glass is a laminated glass comprising 2pcs of glass sandwiched in between by an EVA/PVB interlayer.
Why does PDLC glass scatter light?
The liquid crystals change their refractive index in relation to the isotropically transparent polymer in which they are immersed, thereby creating multiple step boundaries throughout the PDLC.
It is this change in refractive index at each boundary which causes light to change course. Since the PDLC material contains millions of liquid crystals, each with a boundary facing a slightly different way, the light is scattered in many directions.
The net effect is to hide whatever is behind the PDLC smart glass.
Does PDLC smart glass become opaque?
No, the correct term is translucent, since light still gets through, albeit scattered in many directions. The glass would be opaque only if the light was blocked or absorbed.
Which sectors are using PDLC glass?
Transportation
Architectural (residential and commercial)
Interior design
Retail advertising
Healthcare (i.e. hospitals and clinics, since the PDLC smart glass can replace unhygienic curtains and blinds which often carry microbes and germs, and this also improves air quality)
Banking, thanks to the privacy afforded to ATMs and as internal partitions
Hospitality, especially bathrooms, since more natural light can penetrate interior spaces lacking windows to the outside world.