A brighter place: overview of microstructured sunlight guide

Purpose: This article provides an overview of the daylighting system using existing and advanced submicron technology for buildings. The approaches of movable and fixed sunlight guiding system for saving the energy of artificial lighting will be reviewed. The major part is devoted to the sunlight guide panel / film based on a formed prismatic microstructure on transparent substrate by UV-imprint and roll-to-roll process. Design/methodology/approach: To achieve the prismatic microstructure sunlight guide panel / film, the wide aspects including the suitable materials, optical design of the microstructure and tuning the imprint processes are covered. In addition, to estimate the effectiveness of sunlight guide panel / film, a series of experiments were performed and compared with the prediction. Findings: The analysis reveals the outgoing light above the horizontal level of the transom in a major portion. It indeed provides the adequate indoor daylighting by the proposed sunlight guide panel / film. Research limitations/implications:The use of micro-polygonal-structured sunlight guide panel/film to deliver the daylight into the core area of a building is recommended as future research to enhance the indoor illumination by daylighting system. The portion of outgoing light below 90° causes the glare. Practical implications: The authors conclude the proposed prismatic sunlight guide panel/film is a promising approach for guiding daylight into a room. Originality/value: The reviewed daylighting system with submicron-patterned prismatic sunlight guide panel/ film made of inorganic-organic materials is based on the authors’ original work of daylighting techniques. It significantly elevates the use of sunlight and saves energy consumption in a building.