Electrically Tunable Solution-Processed Transparent Conductive Thin Films Based on Colloidally Dispersed ITO@Ag Composite Ink
Silver (Ag) introduced colloidal Sn-doped In<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> (ITO) ink for transparent conductive electrodes (TCEs) was prepared to overcome the limitation of colloidally prepared thin film; low density thin film, high resistance. ITO@Ag colloid ink was made by contr...
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| Format: | Article |
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MDPI AG
2022-06-01
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| Series: | Nanomaterials |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/12/12/2060 |
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| author | Yoo Lim Cha Jeong-Hye Jo Dong-Joo Kim Sun Hee Kim |
| author_facet | Yoo Lim Cha Jeong-Hye Jo Dong-Joo Kim Sun Hee Kim |
| author_sort | Yoo Lim Cha |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Silver (Ag) introduced colloidal Sn-doped In<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> (ITO) ink for transparent conductive electrodes (TCEs) was prepared to overcome the limitation of colloidally prepared thin film; low density thin film, high resistance. ITO@Ag colloid ink was made by controlling the weight ratio of ITO and Ag nanoparticles through ball-milling and fabricated using spin coating. These films were dried at 220 °C and heat-treated at 450–750 °C in an air atmosphere to pyrolyze the organic ligand attached to the nanoparticles. All thin films showed high crystallinity. As the thermal treatment temperature increased, films showed a cracked surface, but as the weight percentage of silver increased, a flattened and smooth surface appeared, caused by the metallic silver filling the gap between the nano-particles. This worked as a bridge to allow electrical conduction, which decreases the resistivity over an order of magnitude, from 309 to 0.396, and 0.107 <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><mo>Ω</mo><mo>·</mo><mi>cm</mi></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> for the ITO-220 °C, ITO-750 °C, and ITO@Ag (7.5 wt.%)-750 °C, respectively. These films also exhibited >90% optical transparency. Lowered resistivity is caused due to the inclusion of silver, providing a sufficient number of charge carriers. Furthermore, the work function difference between ITO and silver builds an ohmic junction, allowing fluent electrical flow without any barrier. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:52:03Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-21bb98c7816c4876ac06dc8531c3088e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2079-4991 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-09T22:52:03Z |
| publishDate | 2022-06-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Nanomaterials |
| spelling | doaj.art-21bb98c7816c4876ac06dc8531c3088e2023-11-23T18:16:51ZengMDPI AGNanomaterials2079-49912022-06-011212206010.3390/nano12122060Electrically Tunable Solution-Processed Transparent Conductive Thin Films Based on Colloidally Dispersed ITO@Ag Composite InkYoo Lim Cha0Jeong-Hye Jo1Dong-Joo Kim2Sun Hee Kim3Materials Research and Education Center, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USADepartment of Materials Science and Engineering, Gachon University, Seongnam 13120, KoreaMaterials Research and Education Center, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Auburn University, Auburn, AL 36849, USADepartment of Fashion Industry, Incheon National University, Incheon 22012, KoreaSilver (Ag) introduced colloidal Sn-doped In<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> (ITO) ink for transparent conductive electrodes (TCEs) was prepared to overcome the limitation of colloidally prepared thin film; low density thin film, high resistance. ITO@Ag colloid ink was made by controlling the weight ratio of ITO and Ag nanoparticles through ball-milling and fabricated using spin coating. These films were dried at 220 °C and heat-treated at 450–750 °C in an air atmosphere to pyrolyze the organic ligand attached to the nanoparticles. All thin films showed high crystallinity. As the thermal treatment temperature increased, films showed a cracked surface, but as the weight percentage of silver increased, a flattened and smooth surface appeared, caused by the metallic silver filling the gap between the nano-particles. This worked as a bridge to allow electrical conduction, which decreases the resistivity over an order of magnitude, from 309 to 0.396, and 0.107 <inline-formula><math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" display="inline"><semantics><mrow><mo>Ω</mo><mo>·</mo><mi>cm</mi></mrow></semantics></math></inline-formula> for the ITO-220 °C, ITO-750 °C, and ITO@Ag (7.5 wt.%)-750 °C, respectively. These films also exhibited >90% optical transparency. Lowered resistivity is caused due to the inclusion of silver, providing a sufficient number of charge carriers. Furthermore, the work function difference between ITO and silver builds an ohmic junction, allowing fluent electrical flow without any barrier.https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/12/12/2060transparent conductive oxidessilverSn-doped In<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub>colloidspin coating |
| spellingShingle | Yoo Lim Cha Jeong-Hye Jo Dong-Joo Kim Sun Hee Kim Electrically Tunable Solution-Processed Transparent Conductive Thin Films Based on Colloidally Dispersed ITO@Ag Composite Ink Nanomaterials transparent conductive oxides silver Sn-doped In<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> colloid spin coating |
| title | Electrically Tunable Solution-Processed Transparent Conductive Thin Films Based on Colloidally Dispersed ITO@Ag Composite Ink |
| title_full | Electrically Tunable Solution-Processed Transparent Conductive Thin Films Based on Colloidally Dispersed ITO@Ag Composite Ink |
| title_fullStr | Electrically Tunable Solution-Processed Transparent Conductive Thin Films Based on Colloidally Dispersed ITO@Ag Composite Ink |
| title_full_unstemmed | Electrically Tunable Solution-Processed Transparent Conductive Thin Films Based on Colloidally Dispersed ITO@Ag Composite Ink |
| title_short | Electrically Tunable Solution-Processed Transparent Conductive Thin Films Based on Colloidally Dispersed ITO@Ag Composite Ink |
| title_sort | electrically tunable solution processed transparent conductive thin films based on colloidally dispersed ito ag composite ink |
| topic | transparent conductive oxides silver Sn-doped In<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> colloid spin coating |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2079-4991/12/12/2060 |
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