Ultrasmooth, extremely deformable and shape recoverable Ag nanowire embedded transparent electrode

Abstract

Transparent electrodes have been widely used in electronic devices such as solar cells, displays, and touch screens. Highly flexible transparent electrodes are especially desired for the development of next generation flexible electronic devices. Although indium tin oxide (ITO) is the most commonly used material for the fabrication of transparent electrodes, its brittleness and growing cost limit its utility for flexible electronic devices. Therefore, the need for new transparent conductive materials with superior mechanical properties is clear and urgent. Ag nanowire (AgNW) has been attracting increasing attention because of its effective combination of electrical and optical properties. However, it still suffers from several drawbacks, including large surface roughness, instability against oxidation and moisture, and poor adhesion to substrates. These issues need to be addressed before wide spread use of metallic NW as transparent electrodes can be realized. In this study, we demonstrated the fabrication of a flexible transparent electrode with superior mechanical, electrical and optical properties by embedding a AgNW film into a transparent polymer matrix. This technique can produce electrodes with an ultrasmooth and extremely deformable transparent electrode that have sheet resistance and transmittance comparable to those of an ITO electrode.

Intense-pulsed-light irradiation of Ag nanowire-based transparent electrodes for use in flexible organic light emitting diodes

“…For instance, smooth transparent electrodes have been achieved by embedding AgNWs in the surface of a polymer matrix [7][8][9][10][11], wherein a liquid polymer is applied to a pre-coated AgNW network, then simply peeled off the supporting substrate once cured. Using this method, both solid and smooth conductive surfaces can be obtained by burying the AgNW film in the surface of the polymer matrix.…”

Foldable Transparent Substrates with Embedded Electrodes for Flexible Electronics

“…2,11,16 In addition, the APP can Solutions with various ratios of AgNW concentration (C Ag ) to C A were spin-coated two or three times onto a Si wafer (which was used as the release substrate) at 1000 rpm for 60 sec.…”

Ultra-Smooth, Fully Solution-Processed Large-Area Transparent Conducting Electrodes for Organic Devices

“…Thicker layers afford high conductivity, but this increase comes at the expense of optical transmittance and vice versa, thus frequently affecting the performance of optoelectronic devices12. It is possible to improve the conductivity of TCEs through the use of metallic materials such as metal nanowires (NWs) and metal nano-mesh/micro-mesh materials1314. Recently, metal NWs, such as silver NWs, copper NWs, and gold NWs, have shown promise as alternative TCEs due to their high conductivities, transparency, and excellent flexibility151617.…”