I think antireflection coating is both a benefit and a curse. For me the
curse outweighs the benefit.
Benefit: If you are a soldier, spy, or sniper you might want antireflection
glasses to help keep you hidden. That does not describe me, so this benefit
does not pertain to me.
Benefit: If you are in back-lighted situations, the antireflection coating
can help prevent light from hitting the back of the lens (the side closest
to your eyes) and reflecting into your eyes. This also helps reduce
reflections from bright ambient light hitting your face and reflecting into
your eyes from the back side of the glasses. I do find this helpful, but I
am not often in this situation.
Curse: Since antireflection coatings typically work on an interference
principle utilizing thin-film coatings, anything that modifies the thin-film
coating can stick out like a sore thumb. Often is it a thumb... print.
Oils from your fingers having touched the lenses change the effectiveness of
the antireflection coating at that spot. This means fingerprints are much
more obvious on coated glasses than on non-coated glasses. Personally I
find this very distracting, so I feel the need to clean my antireflection
glasses all the time.
Michael D. Edmiston, Ph.D. Phone/voice-mail: 419-358-3270
Professor of Chemistry & Physics FAX: 419-358-3323
Chairman, Science Department E-Mail edmiston@bluffton.edu
Bluffton College
280 West College Avenue
Bluffton, OH 45817