Patent ID: 8080483

Claim:
A method of forming a nanoporous film, the method comprising: forming a coating solution including clusters, surfactant molecules, a solvent, and one of an acid catalyst and a base catalyst, the clusters comprising inorganic groups; aging the coating solution for a time period to select a predetermined phase that will self-assemble; applying the coating solution on a substrate; evaporating the solvent from the coating solution; removing the surfactant molecules to yield the nanoporous film; and controlling one or a plurality of a water concentration in the coating solution, a pH of the coating solution, a temperature and a time of aging the coating solution, a relative humidity during coating, and a vapor phase composition after coating; wherein the clusters are formed from hydrolysis of one of a silicon alkoxide comprising tetraethylorthosilicate and a silicon halide of a form SiX 4 , wherein X comprises fluorine, chlorine, bromine, iodine, astatine, or combinations thereof; and wherein the surfactant molecules comprise a poly(ethylene oxide)-poly(propylene oxide)-alkane copolymer with the formula H(OCH 2 CH 2 ) 17 —(OCH(CH 3 )CH 2 ) 12 —(CH 2 ) 13 CH 3 .