Sol-gel derived antireflective thin films were created for chalcogenide glass substrates in the 1.5-5 mu m wavelength range of infrared region. Presented herein is a preparation and characterization of the hybrid sol-gel created including particle size, refractive index, pH, and Fourier transform infrared FTIR transmission spectra. It is shown that an increase of not less than 8% and up to 25.1% transmission is achieved using sol-gel derived antireflective coatings. (c) 2006 American Vacuum Society.