Next Generation Antennas Based on Screen‐Printed and Transparent Silver Nanowire Films

Abstract

decisive drawbacks are (i) only a low to moderate level of scalability, (ii) restrictions for the size as well as the material of the substrate due to high-vacuum processes at elevated temperatures, iii) a lack of mechanical flexibility and iv) optical transparency.A few of these obstacles have been overcome with the emergence of novel materials such as carbon nanotubes (CNTs), graphene, [2] graphene oxide, [3] poly (3,4ethylenedioxythiophene) polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), [4] metal nanomeshes, [5] silver-coated polyester films (AgHT), [6] silver flakes, [7] silver nanoparticles, [8] copper oxide nanoparticles [9] as well as metal nanowires. [10,11] For the majority of these materials, scalable and high-yield synthesis protocols or fabrication techniques exist and these materials can potentially be deposited at almost arbitrary scale and under ambient conditions. Due to the cost-effectiveness, the ease-of-processing and the scalability, deposition methods such as inkjet printing, [12] direct laser writing, [13] spray coating [14] or screen printing [15] have become increasingly popular over the last years and raised academic and industrial interest.A high optical transparency of the deposited films is already a requirement for numerous antenna applications including solar cells, [16] sun shields on satellites, [17] radio-identification tags (RFIDs), [18][19][20][21] smart glasses, [22] bandstop filters to reduce the interference from wireless local area networks (WLANs) [23] as well as for energy harvesting. [24,25] Due to this broad application spectrum and the commercialization potential, notable technology companies including the so-called Big Techs, have recently filed several patents related to transparent conductive films and their use for antennas. [26][27][28] The conducting and transparent films presented in this work were made of a commercially available silver nanowire (AgNW)-based screen print paste. The use of screen printed AgNWs for antennas has already been reported in 2014 by Song et al. [29] However, in that work, the antenna films were fully opaque, which is a criterion for exclusion in many applications. In this work, as transparent electrode (TE) material, AgNWs were selected since this material is currently considered as the most promising alternative to the prevailing TE material, i.e., indium tin oxide (ITO), [30] with regard to the electro-optical performance as well as the chemical and the mechanical stability. [31] The antennas presented in this work show a highThe advent of mobile communication has made antennas omnipresent. Conventional methods of antenna manufacturing cannot address the growing demands for novel applications requiring transparent and flexible antennas. In this paper, transparent silver nanowire films are studied with respect to their highfrequency properties. Transparent silver nanowire (AgNW)-based antennas that are screen printed onto flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate are reported. Transparent films with a low sheet resistance of 8.5 Ω sq −...

Transparent Heaters: A Review

“…MNW networks have been the subject of a lot of research lately, with a focus on the industrial integration of the networks as transparent electrodes into opto‐electronic devices, as recently reviewed by several authors. [ 20,38,39,157,158 ] Among the possible MNW materials, silver has been the most investigated, [ 33,34,39,159–162 ] while CuNW networks constitute an interesting alternative. [ 48,66,76,163,164 ] Figure 7b exhibits a high‐resolution TEM image of a CuNW showing the fivefold symmetry.…”

Transparent Antenna for Green Communication Feature: A Systematic Review on Taxonomy Analysis, Open Challenges, Motivations, Future Directions and Recommendations

“…conductive polymers and Conductive inks, such as silver-coated polyester (AgHT-4, AgHT-8) [ [38] , Known for its high optical transmission, relatively low resistivity, non-toxicity, low material cost and good stability, the Al doped ZnO (AZO) film is one of the most promising transparent and conductive oxide (TCO) thin films [7] [39]. and Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) [40] , Titanium Indium Oxide (TIO) [35,41] [42], and aluminum doped zinc oxide (AZO)/silver nanowire (AgNWs), or silver nanowire (AgNWs) [43] [44], and graphene [45] are popular transparent conductive thin films . The thin films that can be applied in displays, LEDs, EMI-screens, and photovoltaic equipment are most popular is indium-tin-oxide (ITO).…”

“…and as Optically Transparent Antennas using glass as a substrate with indium tin oxide (ITO) for solar energy harvesting [29] , or for car network communication application [33] , or using glass as substrate with AZO/AgNWs for Bluetooth communication [44] , or using glass as substrate with AgHT-8 for WLAN [19] and wireless applications [20] , or using glass as substrate with AgHT-4 for Wi-Fi [26] , or using a plexiglass substrate with AgHT-8 for wireless multiple-input and multiple output (MIMO) system [21] and smart devices [24] , or using a polyimide as substrate with TIO Terahertz communication [41] and satellites , radar systems [42] , and using a MWCNT loaded ITO and TIO for Terahertz communication [35] , and using a borosilicate glass substrate with FTO [37] or Pyrex glass substrate with FTO [38] for outdoor applications such as transparent antenna over solar cells , and using a Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) substrate with AgHT-8 thin film for (RFID) tags [22] and UWB home entertainment network [17] , commercial and medical applications [40] , and using a sapphire substrate with gallium-doped zinc oxide (GZO) thin film for smart city concept [7] , and using a quartz substrate with graphene layers for practical applications [45] , or using Perspex acrylic dielectric substrate with (AgHT-8) thin film for wireless applications [23] , or using a glass substrates with ITO films for millimeter wave bands [30] , or using a plexiglass substrate with AgHT-8 short range multiband versatile wireless applications [28]. And can be as Transparent and Flexible Antennas using glass or polymer as substrate with AZO for window-integrated wireless sensor node [39] , or using a polyimide as substrate with IZTO/Ag/IZTO (IAI) for wearable glasses [46] and using polyamide substrate for computer laptop [3] , or using a Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) substrate with transparent silver nanowire (AgNWs) for automobile window, liquid crystal display, organic-lightemitting-diode display [43] and wireless communications for wearable systems [48] , and using a Polyethylene Terephthalate (PET) substrate with AgHT-4 for WLAN and Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access (WiMAX) d...…”

“…Many conductive metal materials have been used as conductive layer in transparent antenna with different substrates to design and fabricate the transparent antenna prototype. transparent mesh conductors [49] [43]. However, the trade-o between the efficiency of the antenna and the mesh characteristics implemented for light transmission [62] imposes a restriction on the efficient production of transparent antennas.…”

Comparison of Laser-Synthetized Nanographene-Based Electrodes for Flexible Supercapacitors

“…All these materials have in common being compatible with printing techniques, which enable their economical and efficient processing on diverse flexible substrates, thereby providing a commercially attractive possibility to obtain multifunctional electronics over large areas [14]. Thus, techniques such as screen-printing or inkjet printing have enabled large achievements in all areas involved in the development of flexible electronics devices, extending from transducers to the antennas for the wireless data transmission [15][16][17][18][19].…”