抄録
A transparent, hard silica glass (SiO2) layer was formed on a conventional protective coat made of
silicone ([SiO(CH3)2]n) on a polycarbonate plate by the 157 nm F2 laser-induced photochemical
modification of silicone into SiO2. An optimum laser irradiation time of the F2 laser was found to form a
crack-free SiO2 layer. The high optical transparency of the samples in the visible light region remained
unchanged after the F2 laser irradiation. In the Taber abrasion test, the SiO2 layer markedly reduced the
number of scratches, resulting in a low haze value. The haze values of the samples also depend on the
thickness of the silicone protective coat underneath the SiO2 protective layer. As a result, the difference
of haze value [δ Hz] was successfully reduced to 1.2%, compared with these of the nonirradiated sample
and a bare polycarbonate plate of approximately 3.5 and 46%, respectively, which is comparable to the
case of a bare silica glass of approximately 0.9%.
