Antiscratch

Antiscratch refers to coatings and surface treatments designed to resist scratching and abrasive wear on exposed materials. The term is used across consumer electronics, eyewear, automotive, and industrial tooling to describe protective layers that maintain appearance and function while resisting minor impacts and everyday wear. Antiscratch is not a single product but a family of technologies that balance hardness, toughness, and optical or tactile properties to suit different substrates.

Common antiscratch approaches include inorganic hard coatings such as silicon dioxide (SiO2), aluminum oxide (Al2O3), and silicon carbide (SiC); diamond-like carbon (DLC) films; and ceramic coatings that bond to glass, metal, or plastics. Polymer-based hard coats and multilayer protective films are also used, often designed to be transparent and low-friction. In display technology, strengthened glass and multilayer coatings are paired with scratch-resistant substrates to enhance durability without sacrificing clarity.

Performance depends on hardness, adhesion, and toughness, with trade-offs among cost, optical or tactile properties, and impact resistance. While antiscratch layers can significantly reduce surface damage, they do not render a surface impervious to deep gouges or high-energy impacts. Durability is affected by wear, substrate curvature, cleaning methods, and long-term environmental exposure.

Testing commonly includes pencil hardness tests, scratch or tribology assessments, and accelerated aging studies. Ongoing research aims to develop self-healing capabilities, tougher yet maintainable coatings, and coatings that preserve optical quality while delivering strong scratch resistance.

See also: scratch resistance, protective coating, hard coating, durable glass, protective film.