META Announces LumaChrome for Government Issued Cards

Functional materials company, META, has announced that its LumaChrome colour-shifting film, acquired as part of its purchase of Nanotech Security Corporation, can now be applied as a security feature for embedded polycarbonate government identity cards, eIDs and immunity cards through a new digital demetalisation process.

This new solution safeguards against card delamination and helps ensure identity documents are resistant to counterfeiting. According to META, a number of technically advanced and complex technologies are required in production, including digital demetalisation, physical vapour deposition, and a variety of exacting chemical and material science requirements – the accessibility of which is limited to a handful of producers.

The new digital demetalisation process is highly secure and driven by a sophisticated computer graphics program resulting in a demetalised film and effect, ideal for secure ID applications. META claims that there are only a handful of organisations globally with the capability to digitally demetalise colour-shifting film.

In a company announcement, META states that LumaChrome film is an excellent solution for integrators, channel partners and convertors in the government and ID industry as it is highly versatile. Its crisp colour-shift, impactful colours, simplicity, and durability have made it useful in document and currency authentication for over two decades.

The company can deliver customised, laser engravable tamper-evident LumaChrome film, sandwiched securely between polycarbonate layers. Further customisation like laser engraving QR codes, barcodes, state and corporate logos, serial numbers, and even microtext on LumaChrome gives the solution an additional layer of security.

Polycarbonate cards usually consist of layers of plastic that overlap and intertwine. It is virtually impossible to separate the layers of polycarbonate, which are fused together using temperature and pressure while manufacturing the final card. This layering process is one of the reasons that polycarbonate is so secure, as the intertwined layers make it nearly impossible to reclaim LumaChrome or swap out document information or photos without completely destroying the document and rendering it useless.

Available in multiple widths and dimensions to meet a variety of needs, LumaChrome colour- shifting film is compatible with conventional printing equipment and polycarbonate processes.

With document counterfeiting, identity theft and tax evasion on the rise, the need for innovative document security solutions is increasingly a concern for governments and individuals alike, says META.