This website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more.
This Website Uses Cookies
By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to our cookie policy. Learn More
This website requires certain cookies to work and uses other cookies to help you have the best experience. By visiting this website, certain cookies have already been set, which you may delete and block. By closing this message or continuing to use our site, you agree to the use of cookies. Visit our updated privacy and cookie policy to learn more.
Architectural Record
search
cart
facebook twitter linkedin youtube
Architectural Record
  • NEWS
    • Latest News
    • Coronavirus Coverage
    • Technology
    • Interviews
    • Commentary
    • Reviews
    • Editorials
  • PROJECTS
    • Building Types
    • Adaptive Reuse
    • Museums & Arts Centers
    • Colleges & Universities
    • Interior Design
    • Lighting
    • Kitchen & Bath
  • HOUSES
    • Record Houses
    • House of the Month
    • Featured Houses
  • PRODUCTS
    • Material World Newsletter
    • Categories
    • Products of the Year
    • Sponsored Products
  • EXCLUSIVES
    • Videos
    • Podcasts
      • Design:ED Podcast
      • Sponsored Podcasts
    • Historic Archive
    • Record Houses
    • Design Vanguard
    • Record Interiors
    • Top 300 Firms
    • Products of the Year
    • Best Architecture Schools
  • SUBMIT WORK
    • Design Vanguard 2021
    • Record Houses 2021
    • Guess the Architect
    • Cocktail Napkin Sketch
    • Submission Guidelines
    • Editorial Calendar
  • CONTINUING ED
    • Editorial Continuing Ed
    • CE Center
    • CE Topic Academies
  • EVENTS
    • Record on the Road
    • Innovation Conference
    • Women In Architecture
    • Webinars
    • Ad Excellence Awards
    • Submit an Event
  • MORE
    • CONTACT
      • Masthead
      • Customer Service
      • Subscribe
      • Custom Content Marketing
    • Advertise
    • Newsletters
    • Store
    • Custom Content Marketing
    • Research
    • Sponsor Insights
    • Sponsored eBooks
  • MAGAZINE
    • Current Issue
    • Digital Edition
    • Historic Archive
    • Subscribe
    • Customer Service
    • My Account
  • Sign In
  • Subscribe
  • Sign Out
  • My Account
Home » "Smart Glass" on the Verge

You have 0 Articles Left This Month. Join RECORD Premium for Unlimited Access.

Architectural Technology

"Smart Glass" on the Verge

December 19, 2007
Sara Hart
Order Reprints
No Comments

Two other types of switchable glazing are called liquid crystal device windows and suspended particle device windows (SPD). Liquid crystal technology has been used for some time in wristwatches and is gaining popularity as privacy glazing. A thin layer of liquid crystals is sandwiched between two transparent electrical conductors on thin plastic films, and the entire device is laminated between two layers of glass. When power is off, the liquid crystals are in a random and unaligned state. They scatter light, which makes the glass become translucent, thus obscuring direct views and providing privacy. This type is used most often in interior applications, including bathrooms, conference rooms, and changing rooms in retail stores.

SPDs, on the other hand, start out dark and become transparent when voltage is applied. They are made of an electrically controlled film with a thin, liquidlike layer in which molecular particles are suspended between sheets of glass. When electricity comes into contact with the SPDs, which have a transparent conductive coating, they line up in a straight line and allow light to flow through. Once the electricity is turned off, they move back into a random pattern and block light.

You have 0 complimentary articles remaining.

lock iconJOIN RECORD PREMIUM to Unlock Unlimited Access + Premium Benefits.

Get started for as low as $2 a month!

Already a RECORD Subscriber or Premium Member?Login Now or Register Your Email

What is RECORD Premium?

Privacy Policy

Related Articles

"Smart Glass" on the Verge

Trumpf Smart Factory by Barkow Leibinger

Smart Cities: Big Data, Civic Hackers, and the Quest for a New Utopia

Related Products

SuperLux: Smart Light Art, Design & Architecture for Cities

More Videos

Sponsored Content

Sponsored Content is a special paid section where industry companies provide high quality, objective, non-commercial content around topics of interest to the Architectural Record audience. All Sponsored Content is supplied by the advertising company. Interested in participating in our Sponsored Content section? Contact your local rep.

close
  • BART Milpitas Transit Center.
    Sponsored bySAFTI FIRST

    Award-Winning Transit Center Brings Daylight from the ‘Outside In’

  • Western Window Systems Dallas House.
    Sponsored byWestern Window Systems

    In Dallas, a Glassy Solution to a Challenging Space

  • Cultured Stone Biophilic Design.
    Sponsored byCultured Stone

    A Timeless Imperative: Maximizing Biophilic Design

DESIGN:ED Podcast
Listen to Architectural Record’s DESIGN:ED Podcast

Tweets by @ArchRecord

Events

June 24, 2021

Architectural Record’s Annual Advertising Excellence Awards

Each year, Architectural Record recognizes the most effective ads in the building and design marketplace, and the companies and agencies that produce them. Join us virtually in 2021 for a panel discussion on what our jury of architects and their peers look for in advertising.

View All Submit An Event
Qualified Labor - Free Natural Stone Webinar - April 21, 2021 - 2:00 PM EDT

The latest news and information

#1 Source for Architectural Design, News and Products

JOIN RECORD PREMIUM
  • Contact
    • Survey And Sample
    • Editorial Calendar
    • Industry Jobs
  • Call for Entries
  • Subscribe
    • Subscribe
    • Renew
    • Create Account
    • Change Address
    • Pay My Bill
    • Free eNewsletters
    • Customer Care
  • Advertise
    • Architectural Record
    • Advertising Awards
  • Privacy
    • PRIVACY POLICY
    • TERMS & CONDITIONS
    • DO NOT SELL MY PERSONAL INFORMATION
    • PRIVACY REQUEST
    • ACCESSIBILITY

Copyright ©2021. All Rights Reserved BNP Media.

Design, CMS, Hosting & Web Development :: ePublishing