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In spite of indium tin oxide (ITO)-coated polyethylene terephthalate (PET) sheets being a thriving candidate for flexible and transparent microwave metamaterial absorbers (MMAs), these materials are not robust under severe environmental and handling conditions. The ITO coatings are brittle and have poor scratch resistance when coated over flexible PET sheets; hence, their electrical performance degrades in time. Here, thin films of polyvinyl butyral (PVB) and also its composite with 3-aminopropyltriehoxysilane (APTES) processed at room temperature have been investigated as protective coatings over ITO-coated PET sheets, particularly for MMA application. Prior to coating, the effectiveness of various surface treatments to increase the ITO's wettability by exposure to UV light, chemicals, and air plasma was demonstrated by contact angle measurements. Furthermore, the consequences of surface treatments on …