Cape Cod crépuscule watch

The silicon dial of the Cape Cod crépuscule is made from a single silicon wafer just 0.5 mm thick. A vanishingly thin silicon nitride layer is then applied with incredible precision – a mere 72 nanometers thick, equivalent to less than 1,000 atoms stacked on top of one another – to achieve the desired intense blue hue.

The motif created by Thanh-Phong Lê is then printed onto this surface using photolithography: as the colored silicon wafer is exposed to ultraviolet light, the structure of the motif emerges in a photosensitive resin. Next, the motif is fixed by dipping the wafer in successive baths, much like traditional photographic processing. A 24-carat gold layer is then deposited on the motif, acting like a stencil to create the fine lines in negative relief. As a final step, the dial is cleaned and cut precisely in the shape of the Cape Cod case.