High technology decorative materials for watchfaces and fabrication of same

Abstract

A novel method is provided for producing high technology decorative materials that incorporates both computer-aided design and semiconductor processing. The high technology decorative materials thereby produced also make use of microscopic diffraction gratings for generating a dynamic spectral pattern of changing colors when exposed to ambient light such as sunlight, incandescent light, and the like. The decorative materials comprise a semiconductor substrate (10), at least one patterned coating (14) formed on one major surface (12) of the substrate and a transparent layer (28) formed thereover. The patterned coating comprises a material that is capable of being patterned to the dimensions required to diffract incident visible light and includes a series of lines (26) having an arrangement, spacing and width such that incident light will be diffracted in a pleasing pattern. A suitable jewelry mount (44) may be attached to individual pieces formed from the substrate. The decorative article may be employed to fabricate earrings, pendants, lapel pins, bracelets, rings, brooches, necklaces, tie tacks, tie bars, stick pins, cuff links, watchfaces incorporating the foregoing embodiments, such as pocket watches, clocks, wrist watches, various combinations of watchfaces with the foregoing decorative articles, and the like. Such watchfaces are fabricated by forming a hole through the decorative article to accommodate hour and minute sweep hands.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.