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Development of solution-processed nanowire composites for opto-electronics

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Abstract

Silver nanowire-based contacts represent one of the major new directions in transparent contacts for opto-electronic devices with the added advantage that they can have Indium-Tin-Oxide-like properties at substantially reduced processing temperatures and without the use of vacuum-based processing. However, nanowires alone often do not adhere well to the substrate or other film interfaces; even after a relatively high-temperature anneal and unencapsulated nanowires show environmental degradation at high temperature and humidity. Here we report on the development of ZnO/Ag-nanowire composites that have sheet resistance below 10 Ω/sq and >90% transmittance from a solution-based process with process temperatures below 200 °C. These films have significant applications potential in photovoltaics and displays.

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Acknowledgments

This work was supported as part of the SunShot Initiative by the US Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Office of Solar Energy Technology under Award Number DE-AC36-08GO28308 to the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). This research is based upon work supported in part by the Solar Energy Research Institute for India and the U.S. (SERIIUS) funded jointly by the U.S. Department of Energy subcontract DE AC36-08G028308 (Office of Science, Office of Basic Energy Sciences, and Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Solar Energy Technology Program, with support from the Office of International Affairs) and the Government of India subcontract IUSSTF/JCERDC-SERIIUS/2012 dated 22nd Nov. 2012. Shruti Aggarwal would like to acknowledge the support of the Baskara Fellowship and Rajiv Singh would like to acknowledge the support of the Raman Fellowship.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Process Tech and Adv Concepts, Golden, CO, 80401, USA

    David S. Ginley

  2. University School of Basic and Applied Sciences, Guro Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi, 110075, India

    Shruti Aggarwal

  3. National Physical Laboratory, New Delhi, 110012, India

    Rajiv Singh

  4. National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Process Tech and Adv Concepts, Golden, CO, 80401, USA

    Tom Gennett, Maikel F. A. M. van Hest & John D. Perkins

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  1. David S. Ginley
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  2. Shruti Aggarwal
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  3. Rajiv Singh
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  4. Tom Gennett
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  5. Maikel F. A. M. van Hest
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  6. John D. Perkins
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Correspondence to David S. Ginley.

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Ginley, D.S., Aggarwal, S., Singh, R. et al. Development of solution-processed nanowire composites for opto-electronics. MRS Communications 6, 341–347 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1557/mrc.2016.49

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