All-atmospheric fabrication of Ag–Cu core–shell nanowire transparent electrodes with Haacke figure of merit &gt;600 × 10–3 Ω−1

DiGregorio, Steven; Miller, Collin E; Prince, Kevin J.; Hildreth, Owen; Wheeler, Lance M.

doi:10.1038/s41598-022-25080-x

Cited by 6 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 76 publications

(80 reference statements)

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“…Preliminary data indicate that printing with thinner needles or using a printer with higher stage accuracy can decrease the line width to ∼75 μm (Figure S10). Additionally, recent reports have used RSI in nanowire transparent conducting electrodes that show line widths as low as 180 nm to 3.5 μm. − …”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigation of Reactive Silver Ink Formula for Reduced Silver Consumption in Silicon Heterojunction Metallization

DiGregorio

Martinez-Szewczyk

Raikar

et al. 2023

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

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Silver is the most expensive non-silicon component in photovoltaic cells. This is particularly salient for silicon heterojunction (SHJ) cells, which rely on large quantities of low-temperature silver pastes (LT-SP). SHJ cells would benefit greatly from an industrially scalable metallization process that simultaneously offers low silver consumption, low finger resistivities (<20 μΩ·cm), and low processing temperatures. Printed reactive silver inks (RSI) are an innovative candidate to this end. This work furthers the research on RSI metallization by investigating the impact of ink formula on properties pertinent to SHJ cells, including electrical properties, line width, ink splatter, silver consumption, cell performance, and adhesion. We introduce a scalable, high-throughput flexible needle contact printing approach for metallization that solves many of the issues associated with drop-on-demand printing. The printed silver fingers are characterized using electrical measurements and top-down and cross-sectional microscopy. The best performing ink, consisting of silver acetate, ethylamine, and formic acid, achieved silver fingers with total resistivities of 3.1 μΩ·cm and contact resistivities of 3.2 mΩ·cm2 when printed at 61 °C. This ink metallized a full-sized 156 mm × 156 mm SHJ cell. This is the first reported data for RSI metallization of a full-sized SHJ cell and shows how an optimized RSI can achieve similar performances to LT-SP while consuming 80–90% less silver.

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigation of Reactive Silver Ink Formula for Reduced Silver Consumption in Silicon Heterojunction Metallization

DiGregorio

Martinez-Szewczyk

Raikar

et al. 2023

ACS Appl. Energy Mater.

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“…Even more important is the fact that printing the ammonia-based reactive silver ink directly onto a heated substrate produced lines with resistances only 5.5× higher than that of equivalent bulk silver. These inks are not typically known for good, low-temperature performance relative to more recent reactive silver ink systems . These results show that choosing the correct HT scheme is important when using reactive silver inks.…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Self-reducing reactive inks have demonstrated remarkable performance at low temperatures and have gained widespread adoption in the field. Some self-reducing reactive silver ink applications include transparent conducting electrodes, − solar cells, , flexible/stretchable interconnects, ,, RF inductors, fabric heaters, and electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding . Furthermore, self-reducing reactive silver inks are under active commercialization…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Importance of the Heat Treatment Scheme on Self-Reducing Reactive Silver Inks

DiGregorio,

Raikar,

Hildreth

2023

ACS Appl. Electron. Mater.

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Self-reducing reactive silver inks can print high-quality silver at reasonable temperatures. While numerous studies have explored the impact of processing temperature on electrical properties, the role of the heat treatment scheme has not yet been studied. Common heat treatment schemes include printing and drying inks at room temperature before heat treatment, performing heat treatments while the inks are still wet, and directly printing the inks onto heated substrates. Each scheme generates distinct heat transfer and mass transport kinetics that can affect the silver morphology and electrical properties. However, to date, the impact of different schemes has not been systematically investigated. To address this knowledge gap, this work investigates how different heat treatment schemes impact metal formation, sintering, and the resultant electrical properties of printed self-reducing reactive silver inks. Heat treatment on room-temperature dried inks and wet inks, with top-down (oven) and bottom-up (hot plate) heating sources, were compared. Inks dried at room temperature resulted in extremely porous films that required high heat treatment temperatures (>100 °C) for silver densification. However, these dried films could only densify locally, and their high initial porosities resulted in voids and high resistances (∼0.6 Ω mm −1 ) even after heat treatments above 300 °C. Inks that were wet during heat treatment showed moderate improvements in electrical properties with resistances on the order of 0.4 Ω mm −1 at heat treatments of 250 °C. Printing reactive inks directly onto heated substrates yielded the best low-temperature results, with 0.46 Ω mm −1 (5.5 × bulk silver) line resistances achieved at only 90 °C. Overall, this work's experimental results provide detailed insights into why printing onto a heated substrate results in superior electrical performance compared to more common heat treatment schemes. Additionally, controlling where the precipitation reaction occurs is critical to controlling the film morphology and properties. Lastly, this work shows that even an ammonia-based silver reactive ink can achieve good, low-temperature electrical properties with the proper heat treatment scheme.

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“…[34] Present and emerging optoelectronic technologies, such as LEDs, solar cells, touch panel screens, displays, and transparent heaters, depend on TCEs to operate. High-performance TCEs optimize two material properties that is, R s and T, that are difficult to control independently because both rely on the type and amount of TCE material, which increases or decreases the values of R s and T. [35] The trade off between R s and T is a problem for all TCEs. Optimization of this trade-off is quantified by a figure of merit (ϕ TC ) that combines R s and T into a single value.…”

Section: Impact Of Pedot:pss On Agnwsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Advances in Silver Nanowires‐Based Composite Electrodes: Materials Processing, Fabrication, and Applications

Meena

Choi

Jung

et al. 2023

Adv Materials Technologies

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This article reviews the increasing need for innovative transparent and conductive electrodes (TCEs) for modern optoelectronics, flexible electronics, sensors, and biomedical devices as alternatives to brittle and scarce conventional indium tin oxide (ITO). Among the various TCE materials explored, silver nanowires (AgNWs) have emerged as a promising candidate to replace ITO, thanks to their remarkable properties. However, AgNW‐based TCEs can present limitations such as thermal instability, high contact resistance, increased surface roughness, and inadequate adhesion to substrates. Incorporating secondary conductive materials with AgNWs has proven effective in mitigating these challenges, leading to high‐performance composite electrodes. This review offers a comprehensive overview of the latest advancements in AgNW‐based composite TCEs for applications in optoelectronics, flexible electronics, sensors, and biomedical devices. It covers the materials and methodologies employed to construct high‐performance composite electrodes and present a comparative analysis of various composite TCEs in terms of their optical, electrical, and mechanical properties and performance in different electronic devices. The article also discusses recent breakthroughs in enhancing TCE stability, adhesion, and contact resistance reduction by employing additional materials such as graphene, conductive polymers, and metal oxide nanoparticles. The review addresses the challenges in the field of composite TCEs, proposes potential solutions, and highlights opportunities.

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All-atmospheric fabrication of Ag–Cu core–shell nanowire transparent electrodes with Haacke figure of merit >600 × 10–3 Ω−1

Cited by 6 publications

References 76 publications

Investigation of Reactive Silver Ink Formula for Reduced Silver Consumption in Silicon Heterojunction Metallization

Investigation of Reactive Silver Ink Formula for Reduced Silver Consumption in Silicon Heterojunction Metallization

Importance of the Heat Treatment Scheme on Self-Reducing Reactive Silver Inks

Advances in Silver Nanowires‐Based Composite Electrodes: Materials Processing, Fabrication, and Applications

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