The VW Group, in association with the Fraunhofer Institute for Surface Technology (IST) in Braunschweig, is researching into a windscreen that may reduce ice formation in cold climate.

Researchers have introduced what they claim to be the first anti-fogging and anti-icing car windscreen. Unlike heated windows, the new glass panes make use of a physical principle that does not allow an ice layer to form in the first place, even at temperatures as low as -18 C. The secret lies in a wafer-thin transparent coating of indium tin oxide that is applied to the window and in theory, stops heat from building up and prevents or delays cooling of the glass surface to below the dew point. Volkswagen calls it a