Photoresist-assisted fabrication of thermally and mechanically stable silver nanowire-based transparent heaters

Banseok You, Byeong Kwon Ju, Jong Woong Kim

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

9 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Networked structures of percolated silver nanowires (AgNWs) are an important substitute for brittle indium tin oxide (ITO)-based transparent electrodes, owing to their high ductility and tunable optical and electrical conductivities. Recently, AgNWs have been used in the fabrication of flexible transparent heaters, but only when firmly adhered to the underlying polymer substrate so that the electrodes are reliably flexible. Another requirement is that these electrodes must be passivated from the atmosphere, preserving them even when the fabricated heaters are biased at high voltages or exposed to harsh environments. Here, we used conventional photolithography with a coating of commercial photoresist, UV exposure and development, in order to make protected AgNW networks. For this, AgNW networks preformed on a transparent polymer were used as a photomask layer, so that the photoresist could be developed to be selectively present on the AgNWs. As a result of this simple approach, the mechanical/thermal stability and heating performance of our AgNWs-based transparent heaters were successfully enhanced. It displays an increase of <2% in Rs when bent to a radius of 500 μm for 10,000 cycles, and a biasing voltage to the heater rapidly increased its temperature above 160 °C within a very short time period.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)123-128
Number of pages6
JournalSensors and Actuators, A: Physical
Volume250
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2016 Oct 15

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
This work was supported by the New & Renewable Energy Core Technology Program of the Korean Institute of Energy Technology Evaluation and Planning (KETEP), granted financial resource from the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy, Republic of Korea (No. 20153030012110 ).

Keywords

  • Flexible transparent electrode
  • Photolithography
  • Photoresist
  • Silver nanowire
  • Transparent heater

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Electronic, Optical and Magnetic Materials
  • Instrumentation
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Surfaces, Coatings and Films
  • Metals and Alloys
  • Electrical and Electronic Engineering

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