The optical coating market is predicted to grow at a CAGR of more than 8.9% from 2022 to 2025, attaining a market value of $16.7 billion in 2020.
Table of Contents
Optical Coating Market – Introduction
The global optical coating market is expected to grow at a high rate from 2017 to 2025. The optical coating market is segmented in materials, types, technology, end-use industry, and geography. Optical coatings are mono or multiple layers of thin film coated on an optical component’s exterior or interior surface. These layers are used to create a barrier to the incoming light and subsequently alter the reflection as well as transmission properties of the particular optical system.
The rising demand for anti-reflective optical coatings and other types of coatings in the solar industry is one of the prime growth drivers for the market. The increasing application of the low-cost optical coating in laser component manufacturing, aerospace & defense, and medical sectors has acted as a push factor for the market’s growth.
Report Overview
| Aspect | Details |
| Base year of Estimation | 2016 |
| Value Estimation Year | 2020 |
| Forecast Period | 2017 – 2025 |
| Market Segmentation | By Materials, Types, Technology, End Use Industry, Regions |
| Regional Scope | North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa (MEA) and Latin America |
| Report Coverage | Market Dynamics, Segmentation Overview and Competitive Landscape of the market |
Segmentation Overview
| Term | Segments |
| By Materials | Oxide, Fluoride, Metal and others |
| By Types | Anti-Reflective Coating, High-Reflective Coating, Conductive Coating, Electrochromic Coating, Filter Coating and others |
| By Technology | Vacuum Deposition Technology, Ion-Beam Sputtering, Plasma Reactive Sputtering and others |
| By End Use Industry | Solar Energy, Semiconductor & Electronics, Telecommunication, Medical, Aerospace & Defense, Transportation and others |
| By Regions | North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa (MEA) and Latin America |
Major Players in the Optical Coating Market
| Headquarters | Corporations |
| The U.S. | Dupont, PPG Industries, Newport Corporation, Inrad Optics, Inc and others |
| Germany | Carl Zeiss AG and others |
| Japan | Nippon Sheet Glass Co., Ltd. and others |
What are the driving factors for the growth in the size of the Optical Coating Market?
- Use of different types of optical coatings in industry verticals such as renewable energy, consumer electronics, transportation etc.
- Increasing use of optical coatings to amplify durability and energy yield of solar cell.
- Growing demand for magnesium fluoride as optical coating for its low cost advantage, wide acceptability and rising application in flat panels.
- Improvement in coating technology for aerospace & defense equipment.
Technology Analysis
The industry achieved major technological advancement in the optical coating during the 1930s by introducing a single-layer antireflection coating procedure in Germany. As of 2016, producers deploy mainly four types of optical coating technology such as vacuum deposition technology, ion-beam sputtering, reactive plasma sputtering, and others. Vacuum deposition technology is a thermal process where the source material is transformed into a vapor state through electron-beam bombardment or resistance heating inside the vacuum tube. In the ion-beam sputtering method, energetic ions are targeted to coating materials, and these ions transfer kinetic energy “sputter” materials from the target source. The plasma reactive sputtering process helps the producers to design complex coating designs consisting of high and low index materials.
Market Dynamics
Different optical coatings, such as anti-reflective coating, high reflective coating, conductive coating, filter coating, and electrochromic coating, are utilized in industry verticals, including renewable energy, consumer electronics, transportation, aerospace & defense, etc. Rising demand for renewable energy and government regulations are driving solar cell installation across residential and industrial sectors. In emerging economies, installation rates of low-cost coated solar panels have increased significantly in recent years. On the other hand, optical coatings increase the durability and energy yield of the solar cell, bringing down the cost per output. Therefore, growth in the solar cell industry is fuelling the application market’s growth for optical coating.
In consumer electronics, demand for magnesium fluoride as an optical coating is growing due to its low-cost advantage, wide acceptability in optical component manufacturing, and rising application in flat panels. In the aerospace and defense sector, anti-reflective, filter, and metal coatings are mostly used. Furthermore, advancement in coating technology for aerospace and defense equipment is likely to push the market’s growth. Decreasing demand for coating materials used in optical storage devices globally has negatively affected the development of the optical coating market. In the coming years, an environmentally sustainable and multiple-layer optical coating is expected to emerge as a growth opportunity for the market from 2017 to 2025.
Market Trends
In recent years, demand for different types of optical coating in emerging economies has increased. This growth is attributed to the rising demand for optically coated solar panels, the growing adaptation of optical coating technology by semiconductor & electronics manufacturers, and the consumption of optically coated components in the defense sector. Demand growth for eco-friendly optical coating in the semiconductor & electronics, and solar energy sector is identified as a long-term growth driver. Growth in demand for a multilayer anti-reflective coating in medical, electronic component manufacturing, scientific research, and optical component manufacturing is identified as a mid-term growth driver of the market. The revenue gain of the Asia Pacific optical coating market is mainly caused by growth in demand from semiconductor & electronics, solar energy, and defense sectors. In terms of market structure, the fragmented market for optical coating resulted from the presence of large numbers of players with a competitive product portfolio.
Segmentation Overview
By materials
The optical coating market has been segmented as oxide, fluoride, metal, and others by materials.
By Revenue
In terms of revenue, oxide-based optical coating contributed the largest market share in 2016.
By technology
By technology, the market has been segmented into vacuum deposition technology, ion-beam sputtering, plasma reactive sputtering, and others.
By Types
The market has been segmented by types into the anti-reflective coating, high-reflective coating, conductive coating, electrochromic coating, filter coating, and others.
By End-use industry
The end-use industry has segmented the optical coating market into solar energy, semiconductor & electronics, telecommunication, medical, aerospace & defense, transportation, and others.
By geography
By geography, the market has been segmented into North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Middle East & Africa (MEA), and Latin America. North America held the largest share of the optical coating market in terms of revenue. In North America, volume consumption of optical coatings is driven by growth in the medical sector, rising demand for optically coated components in the aerospace & defense sector, and rapid penetration renewable energy sector.
Competitive Landscape
Leading players operating in the optical coating market are Dupont (the U.S.), PPG Industries (the U.S.), Carl Zeiss AG (Germany), Nippon Sheet Glass Co., Ltd. (Japan), and Newport Corporation (the U.S.) and Inrad Optics, Inc (the U.S.). In North America, the concentration of optical coating producers is significantly high, whereas, in the Asia Pacific, the market is dominated by optical coating producers located in Japan and China.
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