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Separating nucleation from growth for high-yield synthesis of thin silver nanowires

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Abstract

Inactive gas (N2 or Ar) and oxygen scavenger (Fe2+ or Cu+) are used for the synthesis of silver nanowires (AgNWs) with thin diameter (< 30 nm) and high aspect ratio (> 1000), but the yield is always low. Due to the oxidative etching, oxygen largely influences silver nanostructures not only in the nucleation process but also in the growth period. Herein, we systematically studied AgNW synthesis under the condition of an atmosphere with different oxygen contents (O2, air, and N2). We separated the formation of Ag-twinned seeds and nanoparticles in the incubation and the elongation of AgNWs in the growth, which are both sensitive to the oxygen content. AgNWs with 28.5 nm diameter, 2500 aspect ratio, and 91% yield were obtained when the sample was protected in N2 (incubation) and refluxed with air (growth), resulting in a conductive film with a sheet resistance of 48 Ω/sq at a transmittance of 97.0%, comparable to that of ITO. The growth mechanism of such high-quality AgNWs was discussed.

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Data availability

The datasets generated and analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Funding

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC Nos. 61704079, 11674053), the Open Project of National Laboratory of Solid-State Microstructures, and the National Undergraduate Training Program for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (202110291129Z) and PAPD.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. 2011 College, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, 210009, China

    Yu Jiang, Haotian Zhang, Ying Yang & Yunjun Rui

  2. Department of Physics, Nanjing Tech University, Nanjing, 210009, China

    Ran Tao, Dawei Gu, Tianyou Zhang & Yunjun Rui

  3. National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210093, China

    Yunjun Rui & Jun Xu

  4. School of Electronic Science and Engineering, Southeast University, Nanjing, 210096, China

    Neng Wan

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  1. Yu Jiang
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Contributions

YJ and RT designed and conducted the experiment and wrote the manuscript. HZ and NW carried out the UV–Vis absorption and XRD measurements and data analysis. XPS, SEM, TEM, and electrical measurements and data analysis were done by YY, DG, and TZ. YR and JX supervised the project and reviewed and edited the manuscript. All authors have approved the final version of the manuscript.

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Correspondence to Yunjun Rui or Jun Xu.

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Jiang, Y., Tao, R., Zhang, H. et al. Separating nucleation from growth for high-yield synthesis of thin silver nanowires. J Mater Sci: Mater Electron 34, 26 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10854-022-09454-5

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