IR protection property and color performance of TiO₂/Cu/TiO₂ coated polyester fabrics

Both humans and objects can emit infrared (IR) wavelengths which generate thermal emissions that can be detected with an IR camera. Therefore, highly IR reflective materials have been the subject of interest recently, for example, in achieving IR stealth. In this work, IR reflective coatings on polyester fabric in the form of a titanium dioxide/copper/titanium dioxide (TiO₂/Cu/TiO₂; TCT) sandwich-like structure are fabricated by using magnetron sputtering. The coated fabric samples are then examined by using an energy dispersive X-ray detector, a scanning electron microscope and an X-ray diffractometer. The reflection of IR wavelengths which range from 8 to 14 µm of the TCT coated fabric is evaluated. The bending stiffness, and mechanical and adhesion strengths of the coated fabric samples are also investigated. The results show that the TCT sandwich-like structure on the polyester fabric sputtered for 30 min with Cu which results in a Cu film of 200 nm in thickness is observed to have the maximum reflection of IR wavelengths. The color of the TCT coated polyester fabric samples sputtered for 5, 10, 20, and 30 min with Cu is green, yellow, brown and purple, respectively. The TCT coated fabric therefore has potential applications as IR protection textiles for military purposes.