Transparent low-emissivity (low-e) coatings comprising dielectrics of amorphous diamond-like carbon (DLC) and Ag-alloy films are investigated. All films have been prepared by dc magnetron sputtering. An index of refraction of the DLC film deposited in a gas mixture of Ar/H-2 (4%) shows n = 1.80 + 0.047i at 500 nm wavelength. A multilayer stack of DLC (70 nm thick)/Ag87.5Cu12.5-alloy (10 nm)/DLC (140 nm)/Ag87.5Cu12.5-alloy (10 nm)/DLC (70 nm) has revealed clear interference spectra with spectra selectivity. This coating performs low emittance less than 0.1 for black body radiation at 297 K, exhibiting a transparent heat mirror property embedded in DLC films. (c) 2004 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.