Synthesis, characterization and electrocatalytic properties of delafossite CuGaO{sub 2}

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ahmed, Jahangeer [Department of Chemistry, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, 1201 West University Drive, Edinburg, TX 78539 (United States); Department of Chemistry, College of Science, King Saud University, Riyadh 11451 (Saudi Arabia); Mao, Yuanbing, E-mail: yuanbing.mao@utrgv.edu [Department of Chemistry, University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, 1201 West University Drive, Edinburg, TX 78539 (United States)

2016-10-15

Delafossite CuGaO{sub 2} has been employed as photocatalysts for solar cells, but their electrocatalytic properties have not been extensively studied, especially no comparison among samples made by different synthesis routes. Herein, we first reported the successful synthesis of delafossite CuGaO{sub 2} particles with three different morphologies, i.e. nanocrystalline hexagons, sub-micron sized plates and micron–sized particles by a modified hydrothermal method at 190 °C for 60 h [1–3], a sono-chemical method followed by firing at 850 °C for 48 h, and a solid state route at 1150 °C, respectively. Morphology, composition and phase purity of the synthesized samples was confirmed by powder X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopic studies, and then their electrocatalytic performance as active and cost effective electrode materials to the oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions in 0.5 M KOH electrolyte versus Ag/AgCl was investigated and compared under the same conditions for the first time. The nanocrystalline CuGaO{sub 2} hexagons show enhanced electrocatalytic activity than the counterpart sub-micron sized plates and micron-sized particles. - Graphical abstract: Representative delafossite CuGaO2 samples with sub-micron sized plate and nanocrystalline hexagon morphologies accompanying with chronoamperometric voltammograms for oxygen evolution reaction and hydrogen evolution reaction in 0.5 M KOH electrolyte after purged with N{sub 2} gas. - Highlights: • Delafossite CuGaO{sub 2} with three morphologies has been synthesized. • Phase purity of the synthesized samples was confirmed. • Comparison on their electrocatalytic properties was made for the first time. • Their use as electrodes for oxygen and hydrogen evolution reactions was evaluated. • Nanocrystalline CuGaO{sub 2} hexagons show highest electrocatalytic activity.

Transparent conducting film: Effect of mechanical stretching

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

We describe in this paper a transparent conducting film (TCF). ... conducting carbon nanotube film which is crack-resistant for solar cell applications. ... CA 90095, USA; Nanocomp Technologies, Inc, 162 Pembroke Road, Concord, NH 03301 ...

ZnO-Based Transparent Conductive Thin Films: Doping, Performance, and Processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu, Y.; Li, Y.; Zeng, H.

2013-01-01

ZnO-based transparent conductive thin films have attracted much attention as a promising substitute material to the currently used indium-tin-oxide thin films in transparent electrode applications. However, the detailed function of the dopants, acting on the electrical and optical properties of ZnO-based transparent conductive thin films, is not clear yet, which has limited the development and practical applications of ZnO transparent conductive thin films. Growth conditions such as substrate type, growth temperature, and ambient atmosphere all play important roles in structural, electrical, and optical properties of films. This paper takes a panoramic view on properties of ZnO thin films and reviews the very recent works on new, efficient, low-temperature, and high-speed deposition technologies. In addition, we highlighted the methods of producing ZnO-based transparent conductive film on flexible substrate, one of the most promising and rapidly emerging research areas. As optimum-processing-parameter conditions are being obtained and their influencing mechanism is becoming clear, we can see that there will be a promising future for ZnO-based transparent conductive films.

Transparent Conductive Adhesives for Tandem Solar Cells Using Polymer-Particle Composites

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Klein, Talysa [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Lee, Benjamin G [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Schnabel, Manuel [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Warren, Emily L [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Stradins, Paul [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Tamboli, Adele C [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Van Hest, Marinus F [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

2018-02-14

Transparent conductive adhesives (TCAs) can enable conductivity between two substrates, which is useful for a wide range of electronic devices. Here, we have developed a TCA composed of a polymer-particle blend with ethylene-vinyl acetate as the transparent adhesive and metal-coated flexible poly(methyl methacrylate) microspheres as the conductive particles that can provide conductivity and adhesion regardless of the surface texture. This TCA layer was designed to be nearly transparent, conductive in only the out-of-plane direction, and of practical adhesive strength to hold the substrates together. The series resistance was measured at 0.3 and 0.8 O cm2 for 8 and 0.2% particle coverage, respectively, while remaining over 92% was transparent in both cases. For applications in photovoltaic devices, such as mechanically stacked multijunction III-V/Si cells, a TCA with 1% particle coverage will have less than 0.5% power loss due to the resistance and less than 1% shading loss to the bottom cell.

Structural and magnetic properties of epitaxial delafossite CuFeO{sub 2} thin films grown by pulsed laser deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Joshi, Toyanath; Senty, Tess R.; Trappen, Robbyn; Zhou, Jinling; Borisov, Pavel; Holcomb, Mikel B.; Bristow, Alan D.; Lederman, David [Department of Physics and Astronomy, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506-6315 (United States); Chen, Song; Song, Xueyan [Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, West Virginia University, Morgantown, West Virginia 26506-6070 (United States); Ferrari, Piero; Cabrera, Alejandro L. [Pontificia Universidad Catolica, Instituto de Física, Santiago (Chile)

2015-01-07

Growth of pure phase delafossite CuFeO{sub 2} thin films on Al{sub 2}O{sub 3} (00.1) substrates by pulsed laser deposition was systematically investigated as a function of growth temperature and oxygen pressure. X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, Raman scattering, and x-ray absorption spectroscopy confirmed the existence of the delafossite phase. Infrared reflectivity spectra determined a band edge at 1.15 eV, in agreement with the bulk delafossite data. Magnetization measurements on CuFeO{sub 2} films demonstrated a phase transition at T{sub C} ≈ 15 ± 1 K, which agrees with the first antiferromagnetic transition at 14 K in the bulk CuFeO{sub 2}. Low temperature magnetic phase is best described by commensurate, weak ferromagnetic spin ordering along the c-axis.

Large-Area Chemical Vapor Deposited MoS2 with Transparent Conducting Oxide Contacts toward Fully Transparent 2D Electronics

KAUST Repository

Dai, Zhenyu

2017-09-08

2D semiconductors are poised to revolutionize the future of electronics and photonics, much like transparent oxide conductors and semiconductors have revolutionized the display industry. Herein, these two types of materials are combined to realize fully transparent 2D electronic devices and circuits. Specifically, a large-area chemical vapor deposition process is developed to grow monolayer MoS2 continuous films, which are, for the first time, combined with transparent conducting oxide (TCO) contacts. Transparent conducting aluminum doped zinc oxide contacts are deposited by atomic layer deposition, with composition tuning to achieve optimal conductivity and band-offsets with MoS2. The optimized process gives fully transparent TCO/MoS2 2D electronics with average visible-range transmittance of 85%. The transistors show high mobility (4.2 cm2 V−1 s−1), fast switching speed (0.114 V dec−1), very low threshold voltage (0.69 V), and large switching ratio (4 × 108). To our knowledge, these are the lowest threshold voltage and subthreshold swing values reported for monolayer chemical vapor deposition MoS2 transistors. The transparent inverters show fast switching properties with a gain of 155 at a supply voltage of 10 V. The results demonstrate that transparent conducting oxides can be used as contact materials for 2D semiconductors, which opens new possibilities in 2D electronic and photonic applications.

Ultrathin and stable Nickel films as transparent conductive electrodes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grilli, M.L., E-mail: marialuisa.grilli@enea.it [ENEA, Materials Technology Unit, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome (Italy); Di Sarcina, I. [ENEA, Materials Technology Unit, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome (Italy); Bossi, S. [ENEA, Robotics Laboratory, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome (Italy); The Biorobotics Institute, Scuola Superiore Sant' Anna, Viale Rinaldo Piaggio 34, 56025 Pontedera, Pisa (Italy); Rinaldi, A.; Pilloni, L.; Piegari, A. [ENEA, Materials Technology Unit, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome (Italy)

2015-11-02

Ultrathin stable transparent conductive nickel films were deposited on quartz substrates by radio frequency sputtering at room temperature. Such films showed visible transmittance up to 80% and conductivity up to 1.8 × 10{sup 4} S/cm, further increased to 2,3 × 10{sup 5} S/cm by incorporation of a micrometric silver grid. Atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy revealed quite compact, smooth and low surface roughness films. Excellent film stability, ease, fast and low cost process fabrication make these films highly competitive compared to indium tin oxide alternative transparent conductors. Films were characterized regarding their morphological, optical and electrical properties. - Highlights: • Indium-free transparent conductors are proposed. • Ultrathin Ni films are fabricated with a very fast process at room temperature. • Films have conductivity values up to 1.8 × 10{sup 4} S/cm. • Ni ultrathin films are good candidates for UV and NIR optoelectronic applications.

Transparent solar antenna of 28 GHz using transparent conductive oxides (TCO) thin film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mohd Ali, N I; Misran, N; Mansor, M F; Jamlos, M F

2017-01-01

This paper presents the analysis of 28GHz solar patch antenna using the variations of transparent conductive oxides (TCO) thin film as the radiating patch. Solar antenna is basically combining the function of antenna and solar cell into one device and helps to maximize the usage of surface area. The main problem of the existing solar antenna is the radiating patch which made of nontransparent material, such as copper, shadowing the solar cell and degrades the total solar efficiency. Hence, by using the transparent conductive oxides (TCO) thin film as the radiating patch, this problem can be tackled. The TCO thin film used is varied to ITO, FTO, AgHT-4, and AgHT-8 along with glass as substrate. The simulation of the antenna executed by using Computer Simulation Technology (CST) Microwave Studio software demonstrated at 28 GHz operating frequency for 5G band applications. The performance of the transparent antennas is compared with each other and also with the nontransparent patch antenna that using Rogers RT5880 as substrate, operating at the same resonance frequency and then, the material that gives the best performance is identified. (paper)

Transparent solar antenna of 28 GHz using transparent conductive oxides (TCO) thin film

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, N. I. Mohd; Misran, N.; Mansor, M. F.; Jamlos, M. F.

2017-05-01

This paper presents the analysis of 28GHz solar patch antenna using the variations of transparent conductive oxides (TCO) thin film as the radiating patch. Solar antenna is basically combining the function of antenna and solar cell into one device and helps to maximize the usage of surface area. The main problem of the existing solar antenna is the radiating patch which made of nontransparent material, such as copper, shadowing the solar cell and degrades the total solar efficiency. Hence, by using the transparent conductive oxides (TCO) thin film as the radiating patch, this problem can be tackled. The TCO thin film used is varied to ITO, FTO, AgHT-4, and AgHT-8 along with glass as substrate. The simulation of the antenna executed by using Computer Simulation Technology (CST) Microwave Studio software demonstrated at 28 GHz operating frequency for 5G band applications. The performance of the transparent antennas is compared with each other and also with the nontransparent patch antenna that using Rogers RT5880 as substrate, operating at the same resonance frequency and then, the material that gives the best performance is identified.

An optically transparent, flexible, patterned and conductive silk biopolymer film (Conference Presentation)

Science.gov (United States)

Umar, Muhammad; Min, Kyungtaek; Kim, Sunghwan

2017-02-01

Transparent, flexible, and conducting films are of great interest for wearable electronics. For better biotic/abiotic interface, the films to integrate the electronics components requires the patterned surface conductors with optical transparency, smoothness, good electrical conductivity, along with the biofriendly traits of films. We focus on silk fibroin, a natural biopolymer extracted from the Bombyx mori cocoons, for this bioelectronics applications. Here we report an optically transparent, flexible, and patterned surface conductor on a silk film by burying a silver nanowires (AgNW) network below the surface of the silk film. The conducting silk film reveals high optical transparency of 80% and the excellent electronic conductivity of 15 Ω/sq, along with smooth surface. The integration of light emitting diode (LED) chip on the patterned electrodes confirms that the current can flow through the transparent and patterned electrodes on the silk film, and this result shows an application for integration of functional electronic/opto-electronic devices. Additionally, we fabricate a transparent and flexible radio frequency (RF) antenna and resistor on a silk film and apply these as a food sensor by monitoring the increasing resistance by the flow of gases from the spoiled food.

Highly Conductive Transparent and Flexible Electrodes Including Double-Stacked Thin Metal Films for Transparent Flexible Electronics.

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Jun Hee; Kim, Do-Hong; Jeong, Eun Gyo; Lee, Tae-Woo; Lee, Myung Keun; Park, Jeong Woo; Lee, Hoseung; Choi, Kyung Cheol

2017-05-17

To keep pace with the era of transparent and deformable electronics, electrode functions should be improved. In this paper, an innovative structure is suggested to overcome the trade-off between optical and electrical properties that commonly arises with transparent electrodes. The structure of double-stacked metal films showed high conductivity (electronics are expected.

Spin 1/2 Delafossite Honeycomb Compound Cu5SbO6

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Climent-Pascual, E.; Norby, Poul; Andersen, Niels Hessel

2012-01-01

Cu5SbO6 is found to have a monoclinic, Delafossite-derived structure consisting of alternating layers of O–Cu(I)–O sticks and magnetic layers of Jahn–Teller distorted Cu(II)O6 octahedra in an edge sharing honeycomb arrangement with Sb(V)O6 octahedra. This yields the structural formula Cu(I)3Cu(II...

Scalable synthesis of delafossite CuAlO{sub 2} nanoparticles for p-type dye-sensitized solar cells applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ahmed, Jahangeer; Blakely, Colin K.; Prakash, Jai; Bruno, Shaun R. [Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States); Yu, Mingzhe; Wu, Yiying [Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Ohio State University, Columbus, OH 43210 (United States); Poltavets, Viktor V., E-mail: poltavets@chemistry.msu.edu [Department of Chemistry, Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI 48824 (United States)

2014-04-05

Highlights: • Scalable synthesis method for CuAlO{sub 2} nanoparticles described. • High cathodic photocurrents observed compared to previous reports. • Particle size analyzed using TEM and WPPM. -- Abstract: Delafossite CuAlO{sub 2} nanoparticles were prepared using an easily scalable method under controlled partial oxygen pressure (pO{sub 2}) of 10{sup −5} atm at 775 °C. Transmission electron microscopy showed a uniform particle size of 35 nm, agreeing well with the calculated particle size distribution obtained using the Whole Powder Pattern Method (WPPM) via the PM2K software package. Higher cathodic photocurrents (J{sub sc} = 0.954 mA/cm{sup 2} under AM1.5 sun) were observed in p-type dye sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) fabricated using these CuAlO{sub 2} nanoparticles compared to the previous reports on delafossite CuBO{sub 2} (B = Al, Ga) nanoparticles. Enhanced current efficiency in these solar cells is attributed to the nano-sized particles and narrow particle size distributions of nanocrystalline delafossite CuAlO{sub 2}.

Cellulose nanofibers/reduced graphene oxide flexible transparent conductive paper.

Science.gov (United States)

Gao, Kezheng; Shao, Ziqiang; Wu, Xue; Wang, Xi; Li, Jia; Zhang, Yunhua; Wang, Wenjun; Wang, Feijun

2013-08-14

The cellulose nanofibers (CNFs) paper exhibit high visible light transmittance, high mechanical strength, and excellent flexibility. Therefore, CNFs paper may be an excellent substrate material for flexible transparent electronic devices. In this paper, we endeavor to prepare CNFs-based flexible transparent conductive paper by layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly using divalent copper ions (Cu(2+)) as the crosslinking agent. The thickness of the reduced graphene oxide (RGO) active layer in the CNFs paper can be controlled by the cycle times of the LbL assembly. CNFs/[RGO]20 paper has the sheet resistances of ∼2.5 kΩ/□, and the transmittance of about 76% at a wavelength of 550 nm. Furthermore, CNFs/[RGO]20 paper inherits the excellent mechanical properties of CNFs paper, and the ultimate strength is about 136 MPa. CNFs-based flexible transparent conductive paper also exhibits excellent electrical stability and flexibility. Copyright © 2013. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Highly Transparent and Conductive Metallized Nanofibers by Electrospinning and Electroplating

Science.gov (United States)

Yoon, Sam S.; Yarin, Alexander L.

2017-11-01

Transparent conducting films (TCFs) and transparent heaters (THs) are of interest for a wide variety of applications, from displays to window defrosters. Here, we demonstrate production of highly flexible, conducting, and transparent copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), platinum (Pt), and silver (Ag) nanofibers suitable for use not only in TCFs and THs but also in some other engineering applications. The merging of fibers at their intersections (i.e. self-junctioning) minimizes contact resistance in these films. These metallized nanofibers exhibited a remarkably low sheet resistance at a high optical transmittance. This low sheet resistance allows them to serve as low-voltage heaters, achieving a high heating temperature at a relatively low applied voltage. These nanofibers are free-standing, flexible, stretchable, and their mechanical reliability was confirmed through various mechanical endurance tests.

First-principle study on O–A–O dumbbell of delafossite crystal

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang, H.F.; Gui, C.Y.; Zhu, Y.Y.; Wu, D.J.; Sun, S.P.; Xiong, C.; Zhu, X.B.

2014-01-01

Highlights: • From Cu to Ag, the increase of c parameters is attributed to electrostatic repulsion. • The difference charge density shows the bonding of Ag–O is more covalent. • Effective mass of AgAlO 2 along the [0 0 1] direction is smaller than that of CuAlO 2 . -- Abstract: Taking CuAlO 2 and AgAlO 2 for instance, O–A–O dumbbell-related electronic properties in delafossite lattice were systematically investigated by using the first-principles projector augmented wave method. Compared with CuAlO 2 , the increase of c parameter comes from the volume effect and electrostatic repulsion due to excess overlap of electron clouds between Ag and O atoms. The difference charge density demonstrates the interaction of A d z2 and O p z orbitals, and suggests the stronger covalent hybridization of Ag–O. The effective masses of these two compounds along [0 0 1] direction are remarkably different. Ag vacancy has lower formation energy relative to Cu one, which could benefit from longer c axis. The differences derived from O–A–O dumbbell could be helpful for thoroughly understanding its role in delafossite lattice

Transparent and conductive paper from nanocellulose fibers

KAUST Repository

Hu, Liangbing

2013-01-01

Here we report on a novel substrate, nanopaper, made of cellulose nanofibrils, an earth abundant material. Compared with regular paper substrates, nanopaper shows superior optical properties. We have carried out the first study on the optical properties of nanopaper substrates. Since the size of the nanofibrils is much less than the wavelength of visible light, nanopaper is highly transparent with large light scattering in the forward direction. Successful depositions of transparent and conductive materials including tin-doped indium oxide, carbon nanotubes and silver nanowires have been achieved on nanopaper substrates, opening up a wide range of applications in optoelectronics such as displays, touch screens and interactive paper. We have also successfully demonstrated an organic solar cell on the novel substrate. © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2013.

Transparent conducting materials: Overview and recent results

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Deelen, J. van; Illiberi, A.; Hovestad, A.; Barbu, I.; Klerk, L.; Buskens, P.

2012-01-01

An overview of different transparent conductors is given. In addition, atmospheric pressure CVD of ZnO resulted in conductivities below 1 mΩ cm for a temperature of 480°C, whereas at a process temperature of 200°C a value of 2 mΩ cm was obtained. Also atmospheric pressure spatial ALD was used to

Transparent Conductive Ink for Additive Manufacturing

Science.gov (United States)

Patlan, X. J.; Rolin, T. D.

2017-01-01

NASA analyzes, tests, packages, and fabricates electrical, electronic, and electromechanical (EEE) parts. Nanotechnology is listed in NASA's Technology Roadmap as a key area to invest for further development.1 This research project focused on using nanotechnology to improve electroluminescent lighting in terms of additive manufacturing and to increase energy efficiency. Specifically, this project's goal was to produce a conductive but transparent printable ink that can be sprayed on any surface for use as one of the electrodes in electroluminescent device design. This innovative work is known as thick film dielectric electroluminescent (TDEL) technology. TDEL devices are used for "backlighting, illumination, and identification due to their tunable color output, scalability, and efficiency" (I.K. Small, T.D. Rolin, and A.D. Shields, "3D Printed Electroluminescent Light Panels," NASA Fiscal Year 2017 Center Innovation Fund Proposal, unpublished data, 2017). These devices use a 'front-to-back' printing method, where the substrate is the transparent layer, and the dielectric and phosphor are layered on top. This project is a first step in the process of creating a 3D printable 'back-to-front' electroluminescent device. Back-to-front 3D-printed devices are beneficial because they can be printed onto different substrates and embedded in different surfaces, and the substrate is not required to be transparent, all because the light is emitted from the top surface through the transparent conductor. Advances in this area will help further development of printing TDEL devices on an array of different surfaces. Figure 1 demonstrates the layering of the two electrodes that are aligned in a parallel plate capacitor structure (I.K. Small, T.D. Rolin, and A.D. Shields, "3D Printed Electroluminescent Light Panels," NASA Fiscal Year 2017 Center Innovation Fund Proposal, unpublished data, 2017). Voltage is applied across the device, and the subsequent electron excitation results in

Nanostructured transparent conducting oxide electrochromic device

Science.gov (United States)

Milliron, Delia; Tangirala, Ravisubhash; Llordes, Anna; Buonsanti, Raffaella; Garcia, Guillermo

2016-05-17

The embodiments described herein provide an electrochromic device. In an exemplary embodiment, the electrochromic device includes (1) a substrate and (2) a film supported by the substrate, where the film includes transparent conducting oxide (TCO) nanostructures. In a further embodiment, the electrochromic device further includes (a) an electrolyte, where the nanostructures are embedded in the electrolyte, resulting in an electrolyte, nanostructure mixture positioned above the substrate and (b) a counter electrode positioned above the mixture. In a further embodiment, the electrochromic device further includes a conductive coating deposited on the substrate between the substrate and the mixture. In a further embodiment, the electrochromic device further includes a second substrate positioned above the mixture.

Transparent conductive graphene electrode in GaN-based ultra-violet light emitting diodes.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Byung-Jae; Mastro, Michael A; Hite, Jennifer; Eddy, Charles R; Kim, Jihyun

2010-10-25

We report a graphene-based transparent conductive electrode for use in ultraviolet (UV) GaN light emitting diodes (LEDs). A few-layer graphene (FLG) layer was mechanically deposited. UV light at a peak wavelength of 368 nm was successfully emitted by the FLG layer as transparent contact to p-GaN. The emission of UV light through the thin graphene layer was brighter than through the thick graphene layer. The thickness of the graphene layer was characterized by micro-Raman spectroscopy. Our results indicate that this novel graphene-based transparent conductive electrode holds great promise for use in UV optoelectronics for which conventional ITO is less transparent than graphene.

Transparent conducting oxide top contacts for organic electronics

KAUST Repository

Franklin, Joseph B.

2014-01-01

A versatile method for the deposition of transparent conducting oxide (TCO) layers directly onto conjugated polymer thin film substrates is presented. Using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) we identify a narrow window of growth conditions that permit the deposition of highly transparent, low sheet resistance aluminium-doped zinc oxide (AZO) without degradation of the polymer film. Deposition on conjugated polymers mandates the use of low growth temperatures (<200°C), here we deposit AZO onto poly-3-hexylthiophene (P3HT) thin films at 150°C, and investigate the microstructural and electrical properties of the AZO as the oxygen pressure in the PLD chamber is varied (5-75 mTorr). The low oxygen pressure conditions previously optimized for AZO deposition on rigid substrates are shown to be unsuitable, resulting in catastrophic damage of the polymer films. By increasing the oxygen pressure, thus reducing the energy of the ablated species, we identify conditions that allow direct deposition of continuous, transparent AZO films without P3HT degradation. We find that uptake of oxygen into the AZO films reduces the intrinsic charge carriers and AZO films with a measured sheet resistance of approximately 500 Ω □-1 can be prepared. To significantly reduce this value we identify a novel process in which AZO is deposited over a range of oxygen pressures-enabling the deposition of highly transparent AZO with sheet resistances below 50 Ω □-1 directly onto P3HT. We propose these low resistivity films are widely applicable as transparent top-contacts in a range of optoelectronic devices and highlight this by demonstrating the operation of a semi-transparent photovoltaic device. © 2014 The Royal Society of Chemistry. 2014.

Room temperature deposition of amorphous p-type CuFeO2 and ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

fabrication of CuFeO2/n-Si heterojunction by RF sputtering method. TAO ZHU1 ... Transparent conducting amorphous p-type CuFeO2 (CFO) thin film was prepared by radio-frequency ... Delafossite oxides CuMO2 (M is trivalent cation, such as.

Comparing the fundamental physics and device performance of transparent, conductive nanostructured networks with conventional transparent conducting oxides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Barnes, Teresa M.; Reese, Matthew O.; Bergeson, Jeremy D.; Larsen, Brian A.; Blackburn, Jeffrey L.; Beard, Matthew C.; Bult, Justin; Van de Lagemaat, Jao [NREL, 1617 Cole Blvd., Golden, CO 80401 (United States)

2012-03-15

Networks made of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) and metallic nanowire networks, graphene, and ultra-thin metal films have all been proposed as replacements for transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) in photovoltaic and other applications. However, only limited comparisons of nanostructured networks and TCOs are available. Several common figures of merit that are often used to compare the electrical and optical performance of the transparent contacts are evaluated here, and the merits of each method of comparison are discussed. Calculating the current loss due to absorption in the TCO is the most useful metric for evaluating new materials for use in solar cells with well-defined sheet resistance requirements and known quantum efficiencies. The 'Haacke' figure of merit, {phi}{sub H}, correlates fairly well with current loss and is a good metric for evaluating electro-optical performance for more general applications. The analyses presented here demonstrate that silver nanowire networks are much closer to achieving optimal electrical and optical properties than carbon-based networks. (Copyright copyright 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

ZnO based transparent conductive oxide films with controlled type of conduction

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zaharescu, M., E-mail: mzaharescu@icf.ro [Institute of Physical Chemistry “Ilie Murgulescu”, Romanian Academy, 202 Splaiul Independentei, 060021 Bucharest (Romania); Mihaiu, S., E-mail: smihaiu@icf.ro [Institute of Physical Chemistry “Ilie Murgulescu”, Romanian Academy, 202 Splaiul Independentei, 060021 Bucharest (Romania); Toader, A. [Institute of Physical Chemistry “Ilie Murgulescu”, Romanian Academy, 202 Splaiul Independentei, 060021 Bucharest (Romania); Atkinson, I., E-mail: irinaatkinson@yahoo.com [Institute of Physical Chemistry “Ilie Murgulescu”, Romanian Academy, 202 Splaiul Independentei, 060021 Bucharest (Romania); Calderon-Moreno, J.; Anastasescu, M.; Nicolescu, M.; Duta, M.; Gartner, M. [Institute of Physical Chemistry “Ilie Murgulescu”, Romanian Academy, 202 Splaiul Independentei, 060021 Bucharest (Romania); Vojisavljevic, K.; Malic, B. [Institute Jožef Stefan, Ljubljana (Slovenia); Ivanov, V.A.; Zaretskaya, E.P. [State Scientific and Production Association “Scientific-Practical Materials Research Center of the National Academy of Science Belarus, P. Brovska str.19, 220072, Minsk (Belarus)

2014-11-28

The transparent conductive oxide films with controlled type of conduction are of great importance and their preparation is intensively studied. In our work, the preparation of such films based on doped ZnO was realized in order to achieve controlled type of conduction and high concentration of the charge carriers. Sol–gel method was used for films preparation and several dopants were tested (Sn, Li, Ni). Multilayer deposition was performed on several substrates: SiO{sub 2}/Si wafers, silica-soda-lime and/or silica glasses. The structural and morphological characterization of the obtained films were done by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, X-ray fluorescence, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and atomic force microscopy respectively, while spectroscopic ellipsometry and transmittance measurements were done for determination of optical properties. The selected samples with the best structural, morphological and optical properties were subjected to electrical measurement (Hall and Seebeck effect). In all studied cases, samples with good adherence and homogeneous morphology as well as monophasic wurtzite type structure were obtained. The optical constants (refractive index and extinction coefficient) were calculated from spectroscopic ellipsometry data using Cauchy model. Films with n- or p-type conduction were obtained depending on the composition, number of deposition and thermal treatment temperature. - Highlights: • Transparent conductive ZnO based thin films were prepared by the sol–gel method. • Controlled type of conduction is obtained in (Sn, Li) doped and Li-Ni co-doped ZnO films. • Hall and Seebeck measurements proved the p-type conductivity for Li-Ni co-doped ZnO films. • The p-type conductivity was maintained even after 4-months of storage. • Influence of dopant- and substrate-type on the ZnO films properties was established.

Influence of the ``second gap'' on the optical absorption of transparent conducting oxides

Science.gov (United States)

Ha, Viet-Anh; Waroquiers, David; Rignanese, Gian-Marco; Hautier, Geoffroy

Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) are critical to many technologies (e.g., thin-film solar cells, flat-panel displays or organic light-emitting diodes). TCOs are heavily doped (n or p-type) oxides that satisfy many design criteria such as high transparency to visible light (i.e., a band gap > 3 eV), high concentration and mobility of carriers (leading to high conductivity), ... In such (highly doped) systems, optical transitions from the conduction band minimum to higher energy bands in n-type or from lower energy bands to the valence band maximum in p-type are possible and can degrade transparency. In fact, it has been claimed that a high energy (> 3eV) for any of these transitions made possible by doping, commonly referred as a high ``second gap'', is a necessary design criterion for high performance TCOs. Here, we study the influence of this second gap on the transparency of doped TCOs by using ab initio calculations within the random phase approximation (RPA) for several well-known p-type and n-type TCOs. Our work highlights how the second gap affects the transparency of doped TCOs, shining light on more accurate design criteria for high performance TCOs.

Low-temperature synthesis of CuFeO{sub 2} (delafossite) at 70 °C: A new process solely by precipitation and ageing

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

John, Melanie, E-mail: melanie.john@min.uni-muenchen.de [Section Mineralogy, Petrology & Geochemistry, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Theresienstr. 41, 80333 Munich (Germany); Heuss-Aßbichler, Soraya [Section Mineralogy, Petrology & Geochemistry, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Theresienstr. 41, 80333 Munich (Germany); Park, So-Hyun [Section Crystallography, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Theresienstr. 41, 80333 Munich (Germany); Ullrich, Aladin [Experimental Physics II, University of Augsburg, Universitätsstr. 1, 86159 Augsburg (Germany); Benka, Georg [Physics Department, Technical University Munich, James-Franck-Straße 1, 85748 Garching (Germany); Petersen, Nikolai [Section Geophysics, Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München, Theresienstr. 41, 80333 Munich (Germany); Rettenwander, Daniel [Department of Materials Research & Physics, University of Salzburg, Hellbrunnerstrasse 34, 5020 Salzburg (Austria); Horn, Siegfried R. [Experimental Physics II, University of Augsburg, Universitätsstr. 1, 86159 Augsburg (Germany)

2016-01-15

This study presents a new low temperature synthesis method to obtain pure delafossite (Cu{sup 1+}Fe{sup 3+}O{sub 2}) at a temperature of 70 °C within 24 h. For the first time delafossite is synthesized solely by precipitation and subsequent ageing process and without usage of any additives controlling the oxidation state of copper. The synthesized material, called LT-delafossite, consists of pure Cu{sup 1+}Fe{sup 3+}O{sub 2} exclusive of any side products. Rietveld analysis confirms the presence of both 3R (space group (SG): R-3m) and 2H (SG: P6{sub 3}/mmc) polytypes in LT-delafossite. Electron microscopy images show nanometer-sized hexagonal plates with a diameter <500 nm and a thickness of <30 nm. Measurements of the magnetic susceptibility from 2 K to 350 K in zero-field show one peak ∼18.5 K, which is attributed to an AFM phase transition. Zero-field-cooled magnetization data between −14 T and +14 T at 2 K revealed an s-shape form around the origin having no remanent magnetization. - Highlights: • New process: low temperature synthesis of pure CuFeO{sub 2} nanoparticles. • Synthesis at 70 °C within 24 h solely by precipitation and ageing. • Nanoparticle characterization by XRD, FTIR, SEM, ICP–OES, TEM and Mößbauer. • Special magnetic properties of nano-sized CuFeO{sub 2} synthesized at low temperatures.

Formation of electrically conducting, transparent films using silver nanoparticles connected by carbon nanotubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hwang, Sunna; Noh, Sun Young; Kim, Heesuk; Park, Min; Lee, Hyunjung

2014-01-01

To achieve both optical transparency and electrical conductivity simultaneously, we fabricated a single-walled carbon nanotube (SWNT)/silver fiber-based transparent conductive film using silver fibers produced by the electrospinning method. Electrospun silver fibers provided a segregated structure with the silver nanoparticles within the fibrous microstructures as a framework. Additional deposition of SWNT/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) doped with poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) layers resulted in a remarkable decrease in the surface resistance from very high value (> 3000 kΩ/sq) for the films of electrospun silver fibers, without affecting the optical transmittance at 550 nm. The surface resistance of the SWNT/silver film after the deposition of three layers decreased to 17 Ω/sq with 80% transmittance. Successive depositions of SWNT/PEDOT:PSS layers reduced the surface resistance to 2 Ω/sq without severe loss in optical transmittance (ca. 65%). The transparent conductive films exhibited a performance comparable to that of commercial indium tin oxide films. The individual silver nanoparticles within the electrospun fibers on the substrate were interconnected with SWNTs, which resulted in the efficient activation of a conductive network by bridging the gaps among separate silver nanoparticles. Such a construction of microscopically conductive networks with the minimum use of electrically conductive nanomaterials produced superior electrical conductivity, while maintaining the optical transparency. - Highlights: • Silver fibrous structures were produced by electrospinning method. • SWNTs/PEDOT:PSS was deposited on silver fibrous structures. • These films exhibited a low sheet resistance (∼ 17 Ω/sq) at ∼ 80% optical transparency. • Successive depositions of SWNT/PEDOT:PSS layers reduced the surface resistance to 2 Ω/sq

Fabrication of ATO/Graphene Multi-layered Transparent Conducting Thin Films

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Na; Chen, Fei; Shen, Qiang; Wang, Chuanbin; Zhang, Lianmeng

2013-03-01

A novel transparent conducting oxide based on the ATO/graphene multi-layered thin films has been developed to satisfy the application of transparent conductive electrode in solar cells. The ATO thin films are prepared by pulsed laser deposition method with high quality, namely the sheet resistance of 49.5 Ω/sq and average transmittance of 81.9 %. The prepared graphene sheet is well reduced and shows atomically thin, spotty distributed appearance on the top of the ATO thin films. The XRD and optical micrographs are used to confirm the successfully preparation of the ATO/graphene multi-layered thin films. The Hall measurements and UV-Vis spectrophotometer are conducted to evaluate the sheet resistance and optical transmittance of the innovative structure. It is found that graphene can improve the electrical properties of the ATO thin films with little influence on the optical transmittance.

Fabrication of ATO/Graphene Multi-layered Transparent Conducting Thin Films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li Na; Chen Fei; Shen Qiang; Wang Chuanbin; Zhang Lianmeng

2013-01-01

A novel transparent conducting oxide based on the ATO/graphene multi-layered thin films has been developed to satisfy the application of transparent conductive electrode in solar cells. The ATO thin films are prepared by pulsed laser deposition method with high quality, namely the sheet resistance of 49.5 Ω/sq and average transmittance of 81.9 %. The prepared graphene sheet is well reduced and shows atomically thin, spotty distributed appearance on the top of the ATO thin films. The XRD and optical micrographs are used to confirm the successfully preparation of the ATO/graphene multi-layered thin films. The Hall measurements and UV-Vis spectrophotometer are conducted to evaluate the sheet resistance and optical transmittance of the innovative structure. It is found that graphene can improve the electrical properties of the ATO thin films with little influence on the optical transmittance.

Double transparent conducting layers for Si photovoltaics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yun, Ju-Hyung [Department of Electrical Engineering, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY 14260 (United States); Kim, Joondong, E-mail: joonkim@incheon.ac.kr [Department of Electrical Engineering, Incheon National University, Incheon, 406772 (Korea, Republic of); Park, Yun Chang [Measurement and Analysis Division, National Nanofab Center (NNFC), Daejeon 305806 (Korea, Republic of); Moon, Sang-Jin [Energy Materials Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology (KRICT), Daejeon 305-600 (Korea, Republic of); Anderson, Wayne A. [Department of Electrical Engineering, University at Buffalo, State University of New York, Buffalo, NY 14260 (United States)

2013-11-29

Double transparent conductive oxide (TCO) film-embedded Si heterojunction solar cells were fabricated. An intentional doping was not applied for heterojunction solar cells due to the spontaneous Schottky junction formation between TCO films and an n-type Si substrate. Three different TCO coatings were formed by sputtering method for an Al-doped ZnO (AZO) film, an indium-tin-oxide (ITO) film and double stacks of ITO/AZO films. An improved crystalline ITO film was grown on an AZO template upon hetero-epitaxial growth. This double TCO films-embedded Si (ITO/AZO/Si) heterojunction solar cell provided significantly enhanced efficiency of 9.23 % as compared to the single TCO/Si (ITO/Si or AZO/Si) devices due to the optical and the electrical benefits. The effective arrangement of TCO films (ITO/AZO) provides benefits of a lower front contact resistance and a smaller band offset to Si leading enhanced photovoltaic performances. This demonstrates a potential scheme for an effective TCO film-embedded heterojunction Si solar cell. - Highlights: • Double transparent conducting oxide films form a heterojunction to Si. • A quality indium-tin-oxide film was grown above an Al-doped zinc oxide template. • Heterojunction Si solar cell was made without an intentional doping process.

Double transparent conducting layers for Si photovoltaics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yun, Ju-Hyung; Kim, Joondong; Park, Yun Chang; Moon, Sang-Jin; Anderson, Wayne A.

2013-01-01

Double transparent conductive oxide (TCO) film-embedded Si heterojunction solar cells were fabricated. An intentional doping was not applied for heterojunction solar cells due to the spontaneous Schottky junction formation between TCO films and an n-type Si substrate. Three different TCO coatings were formed by sputtering method for an Al-doped ZnO (AZO) film, an indium-tin-oxide (ITO) film and double stacks of ITO/AZO films. An improved crystalline ITO film was grown on an AZO template upon hetero-epitaxial growth. This double TCO films-embedded Si (ITO/AZO/Si) heterojunction solar cell provided significantly enhanced efficiency of 9.23 % as compared to the single TCO/Si (ITO/Si or AZO/Si) devices due to the optical and the electrical benefits. The effective arrangement of TCO films (ITO/AZO) provides benefits of a lower front contact resistance and a smaller band offset to Si leading enhanced photovoltaic performances. This demonstrates a potential scheme for an effective TCO film-embedded heterojunction Si solar cell. - Highlights: • Double transparent conducting oxide films form a heterojunction to Si. • A quality indium-tin-oxide film was grown above an Al-doped zinc oxide template. • Heterojunction Si solar cell was made without an intentional doping process

Angle-specific transparent conducting electrodes with metallic gratings

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rivolta, N. X. A., E-mail: nicolas.rivolta@umons.ac.be; Maes, B. [Micro- and Nanophotonic Materials Group, Faculty of Science, University of Mons, Avenue Maistriau 19, B-7000 Mons (Belgium)

2014-08-07

Transparent conducting electrodes, which are not made from indium tin oxide, and which display a strong angular dependence are useful for various technologies. Here, we introduce a tilted silver grating that combines a large conductance with a strong and angle-specific transmittance. When the light incidence angle matches the tilt angle of the grating, transmittance is close to the maximum along a very broadband range. We explain the behavior through simulations that show in detail the plasmonic and interference effects at play.

A Novel Method of Fabricating Flexible Transparent Conductive Large Area Graphene Film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fan Tian-Ju; Yuan Chun-Qiu; Tang Wei; Tong Song-Zhao; Huang Wei; Min Yong-Gang; Liu Yi-Dong; Epstein, Arthur J.

2015-01-01

We fabricate flexible conductive and transparent graphene films on position-emission-tomography substrates and prepare large area graphene films by graphite oxide sheets with the new technical process. The multi-layer graphene oxide sheets can be chemically reduced by HNO 3 and HI to form a highly conductive graphene film on a substrate at lower temperature. The reduced graphene oxide sheets show a high conductivity sheet with resistance of 476 Ω/sq and transmittance of 76% at 550 nm (6 layers). The technique used to produce the transparent conductive graphene thin film is facile, inexpensive, and can be tunable for a large area production applied for electronics or touch screens. (paper)

Silver Nanowire Transparent Conductive Films with High Uniformity Fabricated via a Dynamic Heating Method.

Science.gov (United States)

Jia, Yonggao; Chen, Chao; Jia, Dan; Li, Shuxin; Ji, Shulin; Ye, Changhui

2016-04-20

The uniformity of the sheet resistance of transparent conductive films is one of the most important quality factors for touch panel applications. However, the uniformity of silver nanowire transparent conductive films is far inferior to that of indium-doped tin oxide (ITO). Herein, we report a dynamic heating method using infrared light to achieve silver nanowire transparent conductive films with high uniformity. This method can overcome the coffee ring effect during the drying process and suppress the aggregation of silver nanowires in the film. A nonuniformity factor of the sheet resistance of the as-prepared silver nanowire transparent conductive films could be as low as 6.7% at an average sheet resistance of 35 Ω/sq and a light transmittance of 95% (at 550 nm), comparable to that of high-quality ITO film in the market. In addition, a mechanical study shows that the sheet resistance of the films has little change after 5000 bending cycles, and the film could be used in touch panels for human-machine interactive input. The highly uniform and mechanically stable silver nanowire transparent conductive films meet the requirement for many significant applications and could play a key role in the display market in a near future.

Synthesis of Oxidation-Resistant Cupronickel Nanowires for Transparent Conducting Nanowire Networks

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rathmall, Aaron [Duke University; Nguyen, Minh [Duke University; Wiley, Benjamin J [Duke University

2012-01-01

Nanowires of copper can be coated from liquids to create flexible, transparent conducting films that can potentially replace the dominant transparent conductor, indium tin oxide, in displays, solar cells, organic light-emitting diodes, and electrochromic windows. One issue with these nanowire films is that copper is prone to oxidation. It was hypothesized that the resistance to oxidation could be improved by coating copper nanowires with nickel. This work demonstrates a method for synthesizing copper nanowires with nickel shells as well as the properties of cupronickel nanowires in transparent conducting films. Time- and temperature-dependent sheet resistance measurements indicate that the sheet resistance of copper and silver nanowire films will double after 3 and 36 months at room temperature, respectively. In contrast, the sheet resistance of cupronickel nanowires containing 20 mol % nickel will double in about 400 years. Coating copper nanowires to a ratio of 2:1 Cu:Ni gave them a neutral gray color, making them more suitable for use in displays and electrochromic windows. These properties, and the fact that copper and nickel are 1000 times more abundant than indium or silver, make cupronickel nanowires a promising alternative for the sustainable, efficient production of transparent conductors.

Structural, electronic and optical properties of silver delafossite oxides: A first-principles study with hybrid functional

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumar, Mukesh; Persson, Clas

2013-01-01

Ternary delafossite compounds are potential materials for optoelectronic devices. Employing a first-principles method, we calculate the structural, electronic, and optical properties of the silver based compounds AgMO 2 (M=Al, Ga or In), which crystallize in delafossite structure. Our calculations show that these AgMO 2 oxides have indirect band gaps and the gap energies are in the region of 1.6–3.0 eV whereas, the lowest direct band gap energies are estimated in the range of 2.6–4.3 eV. Furthermore, we find that AgMO 2 compounds exhibit a strong anisotropy for the dielectric function and absorption spectra. The absorption onset for these compounds occurs well above the band gap energies. Overall, we show that the hybrid functional improves the lattice parameters and band gap energies and the calculated values are in good agreement with the experimental values

III-V/Si wafer bonding using transparent, conductive oxide interlayers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Tamboli, Adele C., E-mail: Adele.Tamboli@nrel.gov; Hest, Maikel F. A. M. van; Steiner, Myles A.; Essig, Stephanie; Norman, Andrew G.; Bosco, Nick; Stradins, Paul [National Center for Photovoltaics, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, 15013 Denver West Pkwy, Golden, Colorado 80401 (United States); Perl, Emmett E. [Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of California, Santa Barbara, California 93106-9560 (United States)

2015-06-29

We present a method for low temperature plasma-activated direct wafer bonding of III-V materials to Si using a transparent, conductive indium zinc oxide interlayer. The transparent, conductive oxide (TCO) layer provides excellent optical transmission as well as electrical conduction, suggesting suitability for Si/III-V hybrid devices including Si-based tandem solar cells. For bonding temperatures ranging from 100 °C to 350 °C, Ohmic behavior is observed in the sample stacks, with specific contact resistivity below 1 Ω cm{sup 2} for samples bonded at 200 °C. Optical absorption measurements show minimal parasitic light absorption, which is limited by the III-V interlayers necessary for Ohmic contact formation to TCOs. These results are promising for Ga{sub 0.5}In{sub 0.5}P/Si tandem solar cells operating at 1 sun or low concentration conditions.

Transparency about past, present and future conduct : Experimental evidence on the impact of competitiveness

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Potters, J.J.M.; Hinloopen, J.; Normann, H-T

2009-01-01

Transparency relates to communication and information about the conduct of firms. Transparency can relate to the past, the present and the future and it can vary in format, content and reliability. In this chapter I review experimental evidence which relates to the impact of transparency on the

Highly conducting and transparent sprayed indium tin oxide

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Rami, M.; Benamar, E.; Messaoudi, C.; Sayah, D.; Ennaoui, A. (Faculte des Sciences, Rabat (Morocco). Lab. de Physique des Materiaux)

1998-03-01

Indium tin oxide (ITO) has a wide range of applications in solar cells (e.g. by controlling the resistivity, we can use low conductivity ITO as buffer layer and highly conducting ITO as front contact in thin films CuInS[sub 2] and CuInSe[sub 2] based solar cells) due to its wide band gap (sufficient to be transparent) in both visible and near infrared range, and high carrier concentrations with metallic conduction. A variety of deposition techniques such as reactive electron beam evaporation, DC magnetron sputtering, evaporation, reactive thermal deposition, and spray pyrolysis have been used for the preparation of undoped and tin doped indium oxide. This latter process which makes possible the preparation of large area coatings has attracted considerable attention due to its simplicity and large scale with low cost fabrication. It has been used here to deposit highly transparent and conducting films of tin doped indium oxide onto glass substrates. The electrical, optical and structural properties have been investigated as a function of various deposition parameters namely dopant concentrations, temperature and nature of substrates. X-ray diffraction patterns have shown that deposited films are polycrystalline without second phases and have preferred orientation [400]. INdium tin oxide layers with small resistivity value around 7.10[sup -5] [omega].cm and transmission coefficient in the visible and near IR range of about 85-90% have been easily obtained. (authors) 13 refs.

Solution-processed assembly of ultrathin transparent conductive cellulose nanopaper embedding AgNWs

Science.gov (United States)

Song, Yuanyuan; Jiang, Yaoquan; Shi, Liyi; Cao, Shaomei; Feng, Xin; Miao, Miao; Fang, Jianhui

2015-08-01

Natural biomass based cellulose nanopaper is becoming a promising transparent substrate to supersede traditional petroleum based polymer films in realizing future flexible paper-electronics. Here, ultrathin, highly transparent, outstanding conductive hybrid nanopaper with excellent mechanical flexibility was synthesized by the assembly of nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) and silver nanowires (AgNWs) using a pressured extrusion paper-making technique. The hybrid nanopaper with a thickness of 4.5 μm has a good combination of transparent conductive performance and mechanical stability using bamboo/hemp NFC and AgNWs cross-linked by hydroxypropylmethyl cellulose (HPMC). The heterogeneous fibrous structure of BNFC/HNFC/AgNWs endows a uniform distribution and an enhanced forward light scattering, resulting in high electrical conductivity and optical transmittance. The hybrid nanopaper with an optimal weight ratio of BNFC/HNFC to AgNWs shows outstanding synergistic properties with a transmittance of 86.41% at 550 nm and a sheet resistance of 1.90 ohm sq-1, equal to the electronic conductivity, which is about 500 S cm-1. The BNFC/HNFC/AgNW hybrid nanopaper maintains a stable electrical conductivity after the peeling test and bending at 135° for 1000 cycles, indicating remarkably strong adhesion and mechanical flexibility. Of importance here is that the high-performance and low-cost hybrid nanopaper shows promising potential for electronics application in solar cells, flexible displays and other high-technology products.Natural biomass based cellulose nanopaper is becoming a promising transparent substrate to supersede traditional petroleum based polymer films in realizing future flexible paper-electronics. Here, ultrathin, highly transparent, outstanding conductive hybrid nanopaper with excellent mechanical flexibility was synthesized by the assembly of nanofibrillated cellulose (NFC) and silver nanowires (AgNWs) using a pressured extrusion paper-making technique. The

Unconventional aspects of electronic transport in delafossite oxides

Science.gov (United States)

Daou, Ramzy; Frésard, Raymond; Eyert, Volker; Hébert, Sylvie; Maignan, Antoine

2017-12-01

The electronic transport properties of the delafossite oxides ? are usually understood in terms of two well-separated entities, namely the triangular ? and (? layers. Here, we review several cases among this extensive family of materials where the transport depends on the interlayer coupling and displays unconventional properties. We review the doped thermoelectrics based on ? and ?, which show a high-temperature recovery of Fermi-liquid transport exponents, as well as the highly anisotropic metals ?, ?, and ?, where the sheer simplicity of the Fermi surface leads to unconventional transport. We present some of the theoretical tools that have been used to investigate these transport properties and review what can and cannot be learned from the extensive set of electronic structure calculations that have been performed.

VOx effectively doping CVD-graphene for transparent conductive films

Science.gov (United States)

Ji, Qinghua; Shi, Liangjing; Zhang, Qinghong; Wang, Weiqi; Zheng, Huifeng; Zhang, Yuzhi; Liu, Yangqiao; Sun, Jing

2016-11-01

Chemical vapor deposition(CVD)-synthesized graphene is potentially an alternative for tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) transparent conductive films (TCFs), however its sheet resistance is still too high to meet many demands. Vanadium oxide has been widely applied as smart window materials, however, no study has been reported to use it as dopant to improve the conductivity of graphene TCFs. In this study, we firstly reported that VOx doping can effectively lower the sheet resistance of CVD-graphene films while keeping its good optical properties, whose transmittance is as high as 86-90%. The optimized VOx-doped graphene exhibits a sheet resistance as low as 176 Ω/□, which decreases by 56% compared to the undoped graphene films. The doping process is convenient, stable, economical and easy to operate. What is more, VOx can effectively increase the work function(WF) of the film, making it more appropriate for use in solar cells. The evolution of the VOx species annealed at different temperatures below 400 °C has been detailed studied for the first time, based on which the doping mechanism is proposed. The prepared VOx doped graphene is expected to be a promising candidate for transparent conductive film purposes.

Highly conductive interwoven carbon nanotube and silver nanowire transparent electrodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Andrew J Stapleton, Rakesh A Afre, Amanda V Ellis, Joe G Shapter, Gunther G Andersson, Jamie S Quinton and David A Lewis

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Electrodes fabricated using commercially available silver nanowires (AgNWs and single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs produced sheet resistances in the range 4–24 Ω squ−1 with specular transparencies up to 82 %. Increasing the aqueous dispersibility of SWCNTs decreased the bundle size present in the film resulting in improved SWCNT surface dispersion in the films without compromising transparency or sheet resistance. In addition to providing conduction pathways between the AgNW network, the SWCNTs also provide structural support, creating stable self-supporting films. Entanglement of the AgNWs and SWCNTs was demonstrated to occur in solution prior to deposition by monitoring the transverse plasmon resonance mode of the AgNWs during processing. The interwoven AgNW/SWCNT structures show potential for use in optoelectronic applications as transparent electrodes and as an ITO replacement.

Transparent conductive-polymer strain sensors for touch input sheets of flexible displays

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Takamatsu, Seiichi; Takahata, Tomoyuki; Muraki, Masato; Iwase, Eiji; Matsumoto, Kiyoshi; Shimoyama, Isao

2010-01-01

A transparent conductive polymer-based strain-sensor array, designed especially for touch input sheets of flexible displays, was developed. A transparent conductive polymer, namely poly(3, 4-ethylenedioxythiophene):polystyrenesulfonate (PEDOT:PSS), was utilized owing to its strength under repeated mechanical bending. PEDOT:PSS strain sensors with a thickness of 130 nm exhibited light transmittance of 92%, which is the same as the transmittance of ITO electrodes widely used in flat panel displays. We demonstrated that the sensor array on a flexible sheet was able to sustain mechanical bending 300 times at a bending radius of 5 mm. The strain sensor shows a gauge factor of 5.2. The touch point on a flexible sheet could be detected from histograms of the outputs of the strain sensors when the sheet was pushed with an input force of 5 N. The touch input could be detected on the flexible sheet with a curved surface (radius of curvature of 20 mm). These results show that the developed transparent conductive polymer-based strain-sensor array is applicable to touch input sheets of mechanically bendable displays.

Formation of ultralong copper nanowires by hydrothermal growth for transparent conducting applications

Science.gov (United States)

Balela, Mary Donnabelle L.; Tan, Michael

2017-07-01

Transparent conducting electrodes are key components of optoelectronic devices, such as touch screens, organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) and solar cells. Recent market surveys have shown that the demands for these devices are rapidly growing at a tremendous rate. Semiconducting oxides, in particular indium tin oxide (ITO) are the material of choice for transparent conducting electrodes. However, these conventional oxides are typically brittle, which limits their applicability in flexible electronics. Metal nanowires, e.g. copper (Cu) nanowires, are considered as the best candidate as substitute for ITO due to their excellent mechanical and electrical properties. In this paper, ultralong copper (Cu) nanowires with were successfully prepared by hydrothermal growth at 50-80°C for 1 h. Ethylenediamine was employed as the structure-directing agents, while hydrazine was used as the reductant. In situ mixed potential measurement was also carried out to monitor Cu deposition. Higher temperature shifted the mixed potential negatively, leading to thicker Cu nanowires. Transparent conducting electrode, with a sheet resistance of 197 Ω sq-1 at an optical transmittance of around 61 %, was fabricated with the Cu nanowire ink.

Infrared transparency and electrical conductivity of non-stoichiometric InxOy films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joseph, Shay; Berger, Shlomo

2010-01-01

In an effort to achieve both high infrared transparency and electrical conductivity, In x O y films having different oxygen atomic fractions, ranging from 0.27 to 0.6 were prepared. From AC electrical measurements it was determined that conductivity of In x O y films, having oxygen atomic fraction near 0.6, is governed by the hopping conduction mechanism via energy states located in the band gap. Conductivity of In x O y films having non-stoichiometric compositions was found to be governed by the free band conduction mechanism. The conduction activation energy was decreased from about 0.47 eV to about 0.02 eV as the deviation of the oxygen atomic fraction from the stoichiometric value of 0.6 was increased. The dielectric function of the films was determined by applying the Drude-Lorentz model to ellipsometric measurements in the infrared and visible wavelengths. In the visible range, the major source for optical transmission loss is interband absorption, which was modeled by the Lorentz model. In the infrared range, optical absorption was measured and attributed to the presence of free charge carriers according to the Drude model. Fitting the model to the optical measurements required a correction factor, which was correlated with the films polarizability. In order to determine the optimal tradeoff between optical transparency in the infrared and electrical conductivity, which were found to be affected mainly by the oxygen concentration in the films, a figure of merit parameter was established. It was found that by introducing non-stoichiometry in the form of oxygen deficiency, the electrical conductivity was improved by as much as two orders of magnitude while the infrared transparency was decreased by no more than 30% with respect to stoichiometric In 2 O 3 films.

Optical transparency and electrical conductivity of nonstoichiometric ultrathin InxOy films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Joseph, Shay; Berger, Shlomo

2011-01-01

The effect of thickness and composition on the electrical conductivity and optical transparency, mainly in the infrared, of ultrathin In x O y films was studied. In x O y films 35-470 A thick with oxygen atomic fractions of ∼0.3 and ∼0.5 were prepared via dc magnetron sputtering. All films were polycrystalline, consisting of only the cubic bixbiyte phase of In 2 O 3 . The average grain size of the films increased from 30 to 95 nm as the film thickness increased. The weak dependence of the electrical conductivity on the frequency and the low activation energies for conduction, a few hundredths of an eV, provided an indication that free band conduction was the primary electrical conduction mechanism in the case of all ultrathin In x O y films. It was found that introducing a high degree of nonstoichiometry in the form of oxygen deficiency did not help improve the electrical conductivity, since not all vacancies contributed two free electrons for conduction and due to impurity scattering. The optical nature of these films, studied mainly by ellipsometry, was found to be dependent on the film's composition and thickness. In the infrared, the dielectric function of all In x O y films was consistent with the Drude model, inferring that the transparency loss in this region was a result of free charge carriers. In the visible however, In x O y films under 170 A, which had an oxygen atomic fraction of ∼0.5, were modeled by extending the Drude model to the shorter wavelengths. Films over 170 A, with the same composition, were modeled using the Cauchy dispersion model, meaning that no absorption was measured. These results indicate that, optically, under specific compositions, ultrathin In x O y films undergo a transition from metalliclike behavior to dielectric behavior with increasing film thickness. Using a figure of merit approach, it was determined that a nonstoichiometric 230 A thick In x O y film, with an oxygen atomic fraction of ∼0.3, had the best combination

The Preparation and Property of Graphene /Tin Oxide Transparent Conductive Film

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

SUN Tao

2017-02-01

Full Text Available Graphene doped tin oxide composites were prepared with SnCIZ·2HZ 0 and graphene oxide as raw materials with sol-gel method and then spincoated on the quartz glass to manufacture a new transparent conductive film. The composite film was characterized with X-ray diffraction(XRDand scanning electron microscopy(SEM analysis. XRD results show that the graphene oxide was successfully prepared with Hummers method. The graphene layers and particulate SnOZ can be clearly observed in SEM photos. The transmittance and conductivity of the thin films were tested with ultraviolet visible spectrophotometer and Hall effect measurement. The results show that the transmittivity of composite film in visible region is more than 90% and surface square resistance is 41 S2/口.The graphene/ SnOZ film exhibits a higher performance in transparence and conductivity than commercial FTO glass.

Optimizing electrical conductivity and optical transparency of IZO thin film deposited by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Lei

Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) thin films of In2O3, SnO2, ZnO, and their mixtures have been extensively used in optoelectronic applications such as transparent electrodes in solar photovoltaic devices. In this project I deposited amorphous indium-zinc oxide (IZO) thin films by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering from a In2O3-10 wt.% ZnO sintered ceramic target to optimize the RF power, argon gas flowing rate, and the thickness of film to reach the maximum conductivity and transparency in visible spectrum. The results indicated optimized conductivity and transparency of IZO thin film is closer to ITO's conductivity and transparency, and is even better when the film was deposited with one specific tilted angle. National Science Foundation (NSF) MRSEC program at University of Nebraska Lincoln, and was hosted by Professor Jeff Shields lab.

Self-assembled large scale metal alloy grid patterns as flexible transparent conductive layers

Science.gov (United States)

Mohl, Melinda; Dombovari, Aron; Vajtai, Robert; Ajayan, Pulickel M.; Kordas, Krisztian

2015-09-01

The development of scalable synthesis techniques for optically transparent, electrically conductive coatings is in great demand due to the constantly increasing market price and limited resources of indium for indium tin oxide (ITO) materials currently applied in most of the optoelectronic devices. This work pioneers the scalable synthesis of transparent conductive films (TCFs) by exploiting the coffee-ring effect deposition coupled with reactive inkjet printing and subsequent chemical copper plating. Here we report two different promising alternatives to replace ITO, palladium-copper (PdCu) grid patterns and silver-copper (AgCu) fish scale like structures printed on flexible poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) substrates, achieving sheet resistance values as low as 8.1 and 4.9 Ω/sq, with corresponding optical transmittance of 79% and 65% at 500 nm, respectively. Both films show excellent adhesion and also preserve their structural integrity and good contact with the substrate for severe bending showing less than 4% decrease of conductivity even after 105 cycles. Transparent conductive films for capacitive touch screens and pixels of microscopic resistive electrodes are demonstrated.

High mobility transparent conducting oxides for thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Calnan, S.; Tiwari, A.N.

2010-01-01

A special class of transparent conducting oxides (TCO) with high mobility of > 65 cm 2 V -1 s -1 allows film resistivity in the low 10 -4 Ω cm range and a high transparency of > 80% over a wide spectrum, from 300 nm to beyond 1500 nm. This exceptional coincidence of desirable optical and electrical properties provides opportunities to improve the performance of opto-electronic devices and opens possibilities for new applications. Strategies to attain high mobility (HM) TCO materials as well as the current status of such materials based on indium and cadmium containing oxides are presented. Various concepts used to understand the underlying mechanisms for high mobility in HMTCO films are discussed. Examples of HMTCO layers used as transparent electrodes in thin film solar cells are used to illustrate possible improvements in solar cell performance. Finally, challenges and prospects for further development of HMTCO materials are discussed.

Sputtered tin oxide and titanium oxide thin films as alternative transparent conductive oxides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Boltz, Janika

2011-12-12

Alternative transparent conductive oxides to tin doped indium oxide have been investigated. In this work, antimony doped tin oxide and niobium doped titanium oxide have been studied with the aim to prepare transparent and conductive films. Antimony doped tin oxide and niobium doped titanium oxide belong to different groups of oxides; tin oxide is a soft oxide, while titanium oxide is a hard oxide. Both oxides are isolating materials, in case the stoichiometry is SnO{sub 2} and TiO{sub 2}. In order to achieve transparent and conductive films free carriers have to be generated by oxygen vacancies, by metal ions at interstitial positions in the crystal lattice or by cation doping with Sb or Nb, respectively. Antimony doped tin oxide and niobium doped titanium oxide films have been prepared by reactive direct current magnetron sputtering (dc MS) from metallic targets. The process parameters and the doping concentration in the films have been varied. The films have been electrically, optically and structurally analysed in order to analyse the influence of the process parameters and the doping concentration on the film properties. Post-deposition treatments of the films have been performed in order to improve the film properties. For the deposition of transparent and conductive tin oxide, the dominant parameter during the deposition is the oxygen content in the sputtering gas. The Sb incorporation as doping atoms has a minor influence on the electrical, optical and structural properties. Within a narrow oxygen content in the sputtering gas highly transparent and conductive tin oxide films have been prepared. In this study, the lowest resistivity in the as deposited state is 2.9 m{omega} cm for undoped tin oxide without any postdeposition treatment. The minimum resistivity is related to a transition to crystalline films with the stoichiometry of SnO{sub 2}. At higher oxygen content the films turn out to have a higher resistivity due to an oxygen excess. After post

Bromination of Graphene: A New Route to Making High Performance Transparent Conducting Electrodes with Low Optical Losses

KAUST Repository

Mansour, Ahmed

2015-07-22

The unique optical and electrical properties of graphene have triggered great interest in its application as a transparent conducting electrode material and significant effort has been invested in achieving high conductivity while maintaining transparency. Doping of graphene has been a popular route for reducing its sheet resistance, but this has typically come at a significant cost in optical transmission. We demonstrate doping of few layers graphene with bromine as a means of enhancing the conductivity via intercalation without major optical losses. Our results demonstrate the encapsulation of bromine leads to air-stable transparent conducting electrodes with five-fold improvement of sheet resistance reaching at the cost of only 2-3% loss of optical transmission. The remarkably low tradeoff in optical transparency leads to the highest enhancements in the figure of merit reported thus far for FLG. Furthermore, we tune the workfunction by up to 0.3 eV by tuning the bromine content. These results should help pave the way for further development of graphene as a potential substitute to transparent conducting polymers and metal oxides used in optoelectronics, photovoltaics and beyond.

Properties of TiO{sub 2}-based transparent conducting oxides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hitosugi, Taro [Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology (KAST), 213-0012 Kawasaki (Japan); Advanced Institute for Materials Research (WPI-AIMR), Tohoku University, 980-8577 Sendai (Japan); Yamada, Naoomi; Nakao, Shoichiro [Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology (KAST), 213-0012 Kawasaki (Japan); Hirose, Yasushi; Hasegawa, Tetsuya [Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology (KAST), 213-0012 Kawasaki (Japan); Department of Chemistry, University of Tokyo, 113-0033 Tokyo (Japan)

2010-07-15

The development and properties of titanium dioxide (TiO{sub 2})-based transparent conducting oxides (TCO), which exhibit properties comparable to those of In{sub 2-x}Sn{sub x}O{sub 3} (ITO), are reviewed in this article. An epitaxial thin film of anatase Ti{sub 0.94}Nb{sub 0.06}O{sub 2} exhibited a resistivity ({rho}) of 2.3 x 10{sup -4}{omega} cm and internal transmittance of {proportional_to}95% in the visible light region. Furthermore, we prepared polycrystalline films with {rho} of 6.4 x 10{sup -4}{omega} cm at room temperature on glass substrates by using sputtering. We focus on characteristics unique to TiO{sub 2}-based TCO, such as a high refractive index, high transmittance in infrared, and high stability in reducing atmospheres. Possible applications of TiO{sub 2}-based TCOs, as well as the mechanism of the transparent conducting properties found in this d-electron-based TCO, are discussed in this review. Photograph showing TiO{sub 2}-based TCO on a transparent plastic film. Note that the film appears greenish due to interference in the film originating from its high refractive index. This high refractive index is one of the unique characteristics of TiO{sub 2}-based TCO. (Abstract Copyright [2010], Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Bendable transparent conductive meshes based on multi-layer inkjet-printed silver patterns

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yu, Po-Chin; Hong, Chien-Chong; Liou, Tong-Miin

2016-01-01

Many consumer electronics manufacturers have used transparent conductive films in solar cells, LED devices, and touch panels as a medium for simultaneous electric charge transportation and light transmission. The conductivity and transmittance of transparent conductive films greatly affect the efficiency of these optoelectronic devices. This study presents a transparent and conductive mesh based on inkjet-printed silver and conductive polymer. Also, we propose a mathematical model for calculating the optimized mesh pattern. The proposed model precisely calculates an optimized line-width-to-line-spacing ratio. Furthermore, the results of our experiment verify the relationship between the line-width-to-line-spacing ratio and figure of merit. Compared with the equations of past studies, the equation proposed in this study is valid for a broader range of line-width-to-line-spacing ratios. In addition, the theoretical results of our study correlate more strongly with the experimental data of this study than with that of previous studies. To achieve the highest figure of merit, the values of the filling factor and the line-width-to-line-spacing ratio should be 0.05 and 19, respectively. Finally, we reduced the sheet resistance of the inkjet-printed mesh by 97.9% by applying multilayer printing. However, we were able to reduce only the optical transmittance of the mesh by 3.0%. The developed inkjet-printed silver meshes can survive more than 3500 bending tests simultaneous with application of 300 mA current. (paper)

Superior thermal conductivity of transparent polymer nanocomposites with a crystallized alumina membrane

OpenAIRE

Md. Poostforush; H. Azizi

2014-01-01

The properties of novel thermoconductive and optically transparent nanocomposites have been reported. The composites were prepared by the impregnation of thermoset resin into crystallized anodic aluminum oxide (AAO). Crystallized AAO synthesized by annealing amorphous AAO membrane at 1200°C. Although through-plane thermal conductivity of nanocomposites improved up to 1.13 W•m–1•K–1 (39 vol% alumina) but their transparency was preserved (Tλ550 nm ~ 72%). Integrated annealed alumina phase, low ...

Emerging Transparent Conducting Electrodes for Organic Light Emitting Diodes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Tze-Bin Song

2014-03-01

Full Text Available Organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs have attracted much attention in recent years as next generation lighting and displays, due to their many advantages, including superb performance, mechanical flexibility, ease of fabrication, chemical versatility, etc. In order to fully realize the highly flexible features, reduce the cost and further improve the performance of OLED devices, replacing the conventional indium tin oxide with better alternative transparent conducting electrodes (TCEs is a crucial step. In this review, we focus on the emerging alternative TCE materials for OLED applications, including carbon nanotubes (CNTs, metallic nanowires, conductive polymers and graphene. These materials are selected, because they have been applied as transparent electrodes for OLED devices and achieved reasonably good performance or even higher device performance than that of indium tin oxide (ITO glass. Various electrode modification techniques and their effects on the device performance are presented. The effects of new TCEs on light extraction, device performance and reliability are discussed. Highly flexible, stretchable and efficient OLED devices are achieved based on these alternative TCEs. These results are summarized for each material. The advantages and current challenges of these TCE materials are also identified.

Preparation of flexible and heat-resisting conductive transparent film by the pyrosol process

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Usami, Hisanao; Nakasa, Akihiko; Adachi, Mami; Suzuki, Eiji; Fujimatsu, Hitoshi; Ohashi, Tatsuya; Yamada, Shigeo; Tsugita, Kouhei; Taniguchi, Yoshio

2006-01-01

A pyrosol process was successfully applied for the preparation of a flexible, conductive, and transparent inorganic film, a tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) film lined with a thin mica layer. This flexible heat-resistant ITO-mica film exhibited high conductivity and transparency, comparable to ITO deposited on glass substrate. The minimum radius of bending for the film, without any recognizable change in the conductivity and appearance, was 8 mm. The ITO deposited on mica showed a large (222) diffraction peak with a smaller (400) peak, in contrast to ITO deposited with (400) orientation on an ordinary glass substrate. Using the ITO-mica film, a prototype model of a flexible organic light emitting diode was fabricated

Preparation of Aluminum Nanomesh Thin Films from an Anodic Aluminum Oxide Template as Transparent Conductive Electrodes

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yiwen; Chen, Yulong; Qiu, Mingxia; Yu, Hongyu; Zhang, Xinhai; Sun, Xiao Wei; Chen, Rui

2016-02-01

We have employed anodic aluminum oxide as a template to prepare ultrathin, transparent, and conducting Al films with a unique nanomesh structure for transparent conductive electrodes. The anodic aluminum oxide template is obtained through direct anodization of a sputtered Al layer on a glass substrate, and subsequent wet etching creates the nanomesh metallic film. The optical and conductive properties are greatly influenced by experimental conditions. By tuning the anodizing time, transparent electrodes with appropriate optical transmittance and sheet resistance have been obtained. The results demonstrate that our proposed strategy can serve as a potential method to fabricate low-cost TCEs to replace conventional indium tin oxide materials.

Controlled Synthesis of Monolayer Graphene Toward Transparent Flexible Conductive Film Application

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yu Han-Young

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Abstract We demonstrate the synthesis of monolayer graphene using thermal chemical vapor deposition and successive transfer onto arbitrary substrates toward transparent flexible conductive film application. We used electron-beam-deposited Ni thin film as a synthetic catalyst and introduced a gas mixture consisting of methane and hydrogen. To optimize the synthesis condition, we investigated the effects of synthetic temperature and cooling rate in the ranges of 850–1,000°C and 2–8°C/min, respectively. It was found that a cooling rate of 4°C/min after 1,000°C synthesis is the most effective condition for monolayer graphene production. We also successfully transferred as-synthesized graphene films to arbitrary substrates such as silicon-dioxide-coated wafers, glass, and polyethylene terephthalate sheets to develop transparent, flexible, and conductive film application.

Antireflective conducting nanostructures with an atomic layer deposited an AlZnO layer on a transparent substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Park, Hyun-Woo; Ji, Seungmuk; Herdini, Diptya Suci; Lim, Hyuneui; Park, Jin-Seong; Chung, Kwun-Bum

2015-01-01

Graphical abstract: - Highlights: • We investigated the antireflective conducting nanostructures on a transparent substrate using atomic layer deposited AlZnO films. • The conformal AlZnO layer on a transparent nanostructured substrate exhibited 5.52 × 10 −4 Ω cm in resistivity and 88% in average visible transmittance. • The improvement of transparency was explained by the gradual changes of the refractive index in the film depth direction. • The decrease in electrical resistivity is strongly correlated to the increased surface area with the nanostructure and the change of chemical bonding states. - Abstract: The antireflective conducting nanostructures on a transparent substrate were shown to have enhanced optical and electrical properties via colloidal lithography and atomic layer deposition. The conformal AlZnO layer on a transparent nanostructured substrate exhibited 5.52 × 10 −4 Ω cm in resistivity and 88% in average visible transmittance, both of which were superior to those of a flat transparent conducting substrate. The improvement of transparency was explained by the gradual changes of the refractive index in the film depth direction. The decrease in electrical resistivity is strongly correlated to the increased surface area with the nanostructure and the change of chemical bonding states.

Applications of Silver Nanowires on Transparent Conducting Film and Electrode of Electrochemical Capacitor

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yuan-Jun Song

2014-01-01

Full Text Available Silver nanowire has potential applications on transparent conducting film and electrode of electrochemical capacitor due to its excellent conductivity. Transparent conducting film (G-film was prepared by coating silver nanowires on glass substrate using Meyer rod method, which exhibited better performance than carbon nanotube and graphene. The conductivity of G-film can be improved by increasing sintering temperature. Electrode of electrochemical capacitor (I-film was fabricated through the same method with G-film on indium tin oxide (ITO. CV curves of I-film under different scanning rates had obvious redox peaks, which indicated that I-film exhibited excellent electrochemical pseudocapacitance performance and good reversibility during charge/discharge process. In addition, the specific capacitance of I-film was measured by galvanostatic charge/discharge experiments, indicating that I-film exhibits high special capacitance and excellent electrochemical stability.

A high-performance, flexible and robust metal nanotrough-embedded transparent conducting film for wearable touch screen panels

Science.gov (United States)

Im, Hyeon-Gyun; An, Byeong Wan; Jin, Jungho; Jang, Junho; Park, Young-Geun; Park, Jang-Ung; Bae, Byeong-Soo

2016-02-01

We report a high-performance, flexible and robust metal nanotrough-embedded transparent conducting hybrid film (metal nanotrough-GFRHybrimer). Using an electro-spun polymer nanofiber web as a template and vacuum-deposited gold as a conductor, a junction resistance-free continuous metal nanotrough network is formed. Subsequently, the metal nanotrough is embedded on the surface of a glass-fabric reinforced composite substrate (GFRHybrimer). The monolithic composite structure of our transparent conducting film allows simultaneously high thermal stability (24 h at 250 °C in air), a smooth surface topography (Rrms touch screen panel (TSP) is fabricated using the transparent conducting films. The flexible TSP device stably operates on the back of a human hand and on a wristband.We report a high-performance, flexible and robust metal nanotrough-embedded transparent conducting hybrid film (metal nanotrough-GFRHybrimer). Using an electro-spun polymer nanofiber web as a template and vacuum-deposited gold as a conductor, a junction resistance-free continuous metal nanotrough network is formed. Subsequently, the metal nanotrough is embedded on the surface of a glass-fabric reinforced composite substrate (GFRHybrimer). The monolithic composite structure of our transparent conducting film allows simultaneously high thermal stability (24 h at 250 °C in air), a smooth surface topography (Rrms touch screen panel (TSP) is fabricated using the transparent conducting films. The flexible TSP device stably operates on the back of a human hand and on a wristband. Electronic supplementary information (ESI) available. See DOI: 10.1039/c5nr07657a

Structural study of TiO2-based transparent conducting films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hitosugi, T.; Yamada, N.; Nakao, S.; Hatabayashi, K.; Shimada, T.; Hasegawa, T.

2008-01-01

We have investigated microscopic structures of sputter and pulsed laser deposited (PLD) anatase Nb-doped TiO 2 transparent conducting films, and discuss what causes the degradation of resistivity in sputter-deposited films. Cross-sectional transmission electron microscope and polarized optical microscope images show inhomogeneous intragrain structures and small grains of ∼10 μm in sputter-deposited films. From comparison with PLD films, these results suggest that homogeneous film growth is the important factor to obtain highly conducting sputter-deposited film

Nanopatterned Metallic Films for Use As Transparent Conductive Electrodes in Optoelectronic Devices

KAUST Repository

Catrysse, Peter B.; Fan, Shanhui

2010-01-01

We investigate the use of nanopatterned metallic films as transparent conductive electrodes in optoelectronic devices. We find that the physics of nanopatterned electrodes, which are often optically thin metallic films, differs from

Ag2CuMnO4: A new silver copper oxide with delafossite structure

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Munoz-Rojas, David; Subias, Gloria; Oro-Sole, Judith; Fraxedas, Jordi; Martinez, Benjamin; Casas-Cabanas, Montse; Canales-Vazquez, Jesus; Gonzalez-Calbet, Jose; Garcia-Gonzalez, Ester; Walton, Richard I.; Casan-Pastor, Nieves

2006-01-01

The use of hydrothermal methods has allowed the synthesis of a new silver copper mixed oxide, Ag 2 CuMnO 4 , the first example of a quaternary oxide containing both elements. It crystallizes with the delafossite 3R structure, thus being the first delafossite to contain both Ag and Cu. Synthesis conditions affect the final particle size (30-500nm). Powder X-ray diffraction Rietveld refinement indicates a trigonal structure (R3-bar m) and cell parameters a=2.99991A and c=18.428A, where Cu and Mn are disordered within the octahedral B positions in the plane and linearly coordinated Ag occupies de A position between layers. X-ray absorption near edge spectroscopy (XANES) for copper and manganese, and XPS for silver evidence +2, +4, and +1 oxidation states. The microstructure consists of layered particles that may form large twins showing 5nm nanodomains. Finally, magnetic measurements reveal the existence of ferromagnetic coupling yielding in-plane moments that align antiferromagnetically at lower temperatures. The singularity of the new phase resides on the fact that is an example of a bidimensional arrangement of silver and copper in an oxide that also shows clear bidimensionality in its physical properties. That is of special relevance to the field of high T c superconducting oxides, while the ferromagnetic coupling in a bidimensional system deserves itself special attention

Homogeneous transparent conductive ZnO:Ga by ALD for large LED wafers

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Szabó, Zoltán; Baji, Zsófia [MTA EK Institute of Technical Physics and Materials Science, Konkoly Thege M. út 29-33, 1121 Budapest (Hungary); Basa, Péter [Semilab Semiconductor Physics Laboratory Co. Ltd., Prielle K. u. 2, H-1117 Budapest (Hungary); Czigány, Zsolt; Bársony, István [MTA EK Institute of Technical Physics and Materials Science, Konkoly Thege M. út 29-33, 1121 Budapest (Hungary); Wang, Hsin-Ying [Epistar corporation No 5, Li-hsin 5th Rd., Hsinchu Science Park, Hsinchu 300, Taiwan (China); Volk, János, E-mail: volk@mfa.kfki.hu [MTA EK Institute of Technical Physics and Materials Science, Konkoly Thege M. út 29-33, 1121 Budapest (Hungary)

2016-08-30

Highlights: • Highly conductive, transparent GZO layers were deposited by ALD. • The ALD layers show superior thickness and sheet resistance homogeneity for 4” wafers. • A two-step ALD deposition technique was proposed and demonstrated to improve the quality of GZO/p-GaN interface. - Abstract: Highly conductive and uniform Ga doped ZnO (GZO) films were prepared by atomic layer deposition (ALD) as transparent conductive layers for InGaN/GaN LEDs. The optimal Ga doping concentration was found to be 3 at%. Even for 4” wafers, the TCO layer shows excellent homogeneity of film resistivity (0.8 %) according to Eddy current and spectroscopic ellipsometry mapping. This makes ALD a favourable technique over concurrent methods like MBE and PLD where the up-scaling is problematic. In agreement with previous studies, it was found that by an annealing treatment the quality of the GZO/p-GaN interface can be improved, although it causes the degradation of TCO conductivity. Therefore, a two-step ALD deposition technique was proposed and demonstrated: a “buffer layer” deposited and annealed first was followed by a second deposition step to maintain the high conductivity of the top layer.

High conductivity and transparent aluminum-based multi-layer source/drain electrodes for thin film transistors

Science.gov (United States)

Yao, Rihui; Zhang, Hongke; Fang, Zhiqiang; Ning, Honglong; Zheng, Zeke; Li, Xiaoqing; Zhang, Xiaochen; Cai, Wei; Lu, Xubing; Peng, Junbiao

2018-02-01

In this study, high conductivity and transparent multi-layer (AZO/Al/AZO-/Al/AZO) source/drain (S/D) electrodes for thin film transistors were fabricated via conventional physical vapor deposition approaches, without toxic elements or further thermal annealing process. The 68 nm-thick multi-layer films with excellent optical properties (transparency: 82.64%), good electrical properties (resistivity: 6.64  ×  10-5 Ω m, work function: 3.95 eV), and superior surface roughness (R q   =  0.757 nm with scanning area of 5  ×  5 µm2) were fabricated as the S/D electrodes. Significantly, comprehensive performances of AZO films are enhanced by the insertion of ultra-thin Al layers. The optimal transparent TFT with this multi-layer S/D electrodes exhibited a decent electrical performance with a saturation mobility (µ sat) of 3.2 cm2 V-1 s-1, an I on/I off ratio of 1.59  ×  106, a subthreshold swing of 1.05 V/decade. The contact resistance of AZO/Al/AZO/Al/AZO multi-layer electrodes is as low as 0.29 MΩ. Moreover, the average visible light transmittance of the unpatterned multi-layers constituting a whole transparent TFT could reach 72.5%. The high conductivity and transparent multi-layer S/D electrodes for transparent TFTs possessed great potential for the applications of the green and transparent displays industry.

Nanostructured Transparent Conducting Oxides for Device Applications

Science.gov (United States)

Dutta, Titas

2011-12-01

Research on transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) alternative to indium tin oxide (ITO) has attracted a lot of attention due to the serious concern related to cost and chemical stability of indium tin oxide. The primary aim of this research is to develop low cost alternative transparent conducting oxides with an eye towards (1) increasing the organic solar cell efficiency and (2) fabricating transparent electronic devices utilizing p-type TCOs. To investigate the fundamental properties, the novel TCO films have been grown on sapphire and economical glass substrates using pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. The films were also grown under different deposition conditions in order to understand the effect of processing parameters on the film properties. The characteristics of the thin films have been investigated in detail using (X-ray diffraction, TEM, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV- photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS), four probe resistivity and UV-Vis transmittance measurements) in order to establish processing-structure-property correlation. ZnO doped with group III elements is a promising candidate because of its superior stability in hydrogen environment, benign nature and relatively inexpensive supply. However, ZnO based TCO films suffer from low work function (4.4 eV, compared to that of 4.8 eV for ITO), which increases the energy barrier and affects the carrier transport across ZnGa0.05O/organic layer interface. To overcome this issue of ZnO based TCOs, the growth of bilayered structure consisting of very thin MoOx (2.0 target composition. These optimized bilayer films exhibited good optical transmittance (≥ 80%) and low resistivity of ˜ 10-4 O-cm. The optimized NiO1+x / GZO and MoOx / GZO bilayers showed significant increase in work function values (˜5.3 eV). The work function of the bilayer films was tuned by varying the processing conditions and doping of over layers. Preliminary test device results of the organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs

Bromination of graphene: a new route to making high performance transparent conducting electrodes with low optical losses

KAUST Repository

Mansour, Ahmed

2015-09-03

The high optical transmittance, electrical conductivity, flexibility and chemical stability of graphene have triggered great interest in its application as a transparent conducting electrode material and as a potential replacement for indium doped tin oxide. However, currently available large scale production methods such as chemical vapor deposition produce polycrystalline graphene, and require additional transfer process which further introduces defects and impurities resulting in a significant increase in its sheet resistance. Doping of graphene with foreign atoms has been a popular route for reducing its sheet resistance which typically comes at a significant loss in optical transmission. Herein, we report the successful bromine doping of graphene resulting in air-stable transparent conducting electrodes with up to 80% reduction of sheet resistance reaching ~180 Ω/ at the cost of 2-3% loss of optical transmission in case of few layer graphene and 0.8% in case of single layer graphene. The remarkably low tradeoff in optical transparency leads to the highest enhancements in figure of merit reported thus far. Furthermore, our results show a controlled increase in the workfunction up to 0.3 eV with the bromine content. These results should help pave the way for further development of graphene as potentially a highly transparent substitute to other transparent conducting electrodes in optoelectronic devices.

Structure-Property Relationships in Amorphous Transparent Conducting Oxides

Science.gov (United States)

Moffitt, Stephanie Lucille

Over the last 20 years a new field of amorphous transparent conducting oxides (a-TCOs) has developed. The amorphous nature of these films makes them well suited for large area applications. In addition, a-TCOs can be made at low temperatures and through solution processing methods. These assets provide promising opportunities to improve applications such as solar cells and back-lit displays where traditional crystalline TCOs are used. In addition, it opens the door for new technological applications including the possibility for transparent, flexible electronics. Despite the recent growth in this field, fundamental understanding of the true nature of conductivity and the amorphous structure in this materials system is still progressing. To develop a greater understanding of a-TCOs, structure-property relationships were developed in the a-IGO and a-IZO systems. From the combination of element-specific local structure studies and liquid quench molecular dynamics simulations it is clear that a degree of structure remains in a-TCOs. By understanding this structure, the effect of gallium on thermal stability, carrier concentration and carrier mobility is understood. The source of charge carriers in a-IZO is identified as oxygen vacancies through the application of in situ Brouwer analysis. The continued development of the Brouwer analysis technique for use in amorphous oxides adds to the available methods for studying defects in amorphous systems. Finally, the foundational knowledge gained from the in-depth study of a-IGO was extended to understand the role of combustion processing and pulsed laser deposition as growth methods for transistors based on a-IGO.

Transparent conducting zinc oxide thin film prepared by off-axis rf ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

Highly conducting and transparent ZnO : Al thin films were grown by off-axis rf magnetron sputtering on amorphous silica substrates without any post-deposition annealing. The electrical and optical properties of the films deposited at various substrate temperatures and target to substrate distances were investigated in detail ...

Ultraviolet laser crystallized ZnO:Al films on sapphire with high Hall mobility for simultaneous enhancement of conductivity and transparency

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Nian, Qiong; Zhang, Martin Y.; Schwartz, Bradley D.; Cheng, Gary J.

2014-01-01

One of the most challenging issues in transparent conductive oxides (TCOs) is to improve their conductivity without compromising transparency. High conductivity in TCO films often comes from a high carrier concentration, which is detrimental to transparency due to free carrier absorption. Here we show that UV laser crystallization (UVLC) of aluminum-doped ZnO (AZO) films prepared by pulsed laser deposition on sapphire results in much higher Hall mobility, allowing relaxation of the constraints of the conductivity/transparency trade-off. X-ray diffraction patterns and morphological characterizations show grain growth and crystallinity enhancement during UVLC, resulting in less film internal imperfections. Optoelectronic measurements show that UVLC dramatically improves the electron mobility, while the carrier concentration decreases which in turn simultaneously increases conductivity and transparency. AZO films under optimized UVLC achieve the highest electron mobility of 79 cm 2 /V s at a low carrier concentration of 7.9 × 10 +19  cm −3 . This is realized by a laser crystallization induced decrease of both grain boundary density and electron trap density at grain boundaries. The infrared (IR) to mid-IR range transmittance spectrum shows UVLC significantly enhances the AZO film transparency without compromising conductivity.

Amorphous and crystalline In_2O_3-based transparent conducting films for photovoltaics

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koida, Takashi

2017-01-01

We reported solar cells with reduced electrical and optical losses using hydrogen-doped In_2O_3 (In_2O_3:H) transparent conducting layers with low sheet resistance and high transparence characteristics. The transparent conducting oxide (TCO) films were prepared by solid-phase crystallization of amorphous (a-) In_2O_3:H films grown by magnetron sputtering. The polycrystalline (poly-) In_2O_3:H films exhibited electron mobilities (over 100 cm"2V"-"1 s"-"1) 2 and 3 times greater than those of conventional TCO films. This paper describes (i) the current status of the electrical properties of In_2O_3-based TCO; (ii) the structural and optoelectrical properties of the a-In_2O_3:H and poly-In_2O_3:H films, focusing on the inhomogeneity and stability characteristics of the films; and (iii) the electrical properties of bilayer TCO. The potential of these high mobility TCO films for solar cells was also described. (copyright 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Copper Nanowires and Their Applications for Flexible, Transparent Conducting Films: A Review

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vu Binh Nam

2016-03-01

Full Text Available Cu nanowires (NWs are attracting considerable attention as alternatives to Ag NWs for next-generation transparent conductors, replacing indium tin oxide (ITO and micro metal grids. Cu NWs hold great promise for low-cost fabrication via a solution-processed route and show preponderant optical, electrical, and mechanical properties. In this study, we report a summary of recent advances in research on Cu NWs, covering the optoelectronic properties, synthesis routes, deposition methods to fabricate flexible transparent conducting films, and their potential applications. This review also examines the approaches on protecting Cu NWs from oxidation in air environments.

Highly Conductive, Transparent Flexible Films Based on Metal Nanoparticle-Carbon Nanotube Composites

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Wen-Yin Ko

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Metallic nanoparticles decorated on MWCNTs based transparent conducting thin films (TCFs show a cheap and efficient option for the applications in touch screens and the replacement of the ITO film because of their interesting properties of electrical conductivity, mechanical property, chemical inertness, and other unique properties, which may not be accessible by their individual components. However, a great challenge that always remains is to develop effective ways to prepare junctions between metallic nanoparticles and MWCNTs for the improvement of high-energy barriers, high contact resistances, and weak interactions which could lead to the formation of poor conducting pathways and result in the CNT-based devices with low mechanical flexibility. Herein, we not only discuss recent progress in the preparation of MNP-CNT flexible TCFs but also describe our research studies in the relevant areas. Our result demonstrated that the MNP-CNT flexible TCFs we prepared could achieve a highly electrical conductivity with the sheet resistance of ~100 ohm/sq with ~80% transmittance at 550 nm even after being bent 500 times. This electrical conductivity is much superior to the performances of other MWCNT-based transparent flexible films, making it favorable for next-generation flexible touch screens and optoelectronic devices.

Development and applications of transparent conductive nanocellulose paper

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Shaohui; Lee, Pooi See

2017-12-01

Increasing attention has been paid to the next generation of 'green' electronic devices based on renewable nanocellulose, owing to its low roughness, good thermal stability and excellent optical properties. Various proof-of-concept transparent nanopaper-based electronic devices have been fabricated; these devices exhibit excellent flexibility, bendability and even foldability. In this review, we summarize the recent progress of transparent nanopaper that uses different types of nanocellulose, including pure nanocellulose paper and composite nanocellulose paper. The latest development of transparent and flexible nanopaper electronic devices are illustrated, such as electrochromic devices, touch sensors, solar cells and transistors. Finally, we discuss the advantages of transparent nanopaper compared to conventional flexible plastic substrate and the existing challenges to be tackled in order to realize this promising potential.

Development and applications of transparent conductive nanocellulose paper.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Shaohui; Lee, Pooi See

2017-01-01

Increasing attention has been paid to the next generation of 'green' electronic devices based on renewable nanocellulose, owing to its low roughness, good thermal stability and excellent optical properties. Various proof-of-concept transparent nanopaper-based electronic devices have been fabricated; these devices exhibit excellent flexibility, bendability and even foldability. In this review, we summarize the recent progress of transparent nanopaper that uses different types of nanocellulose, including pure nanocellulose paper and composite nanocellulose paper. The latest development of transparent and flexible nanopaper electronic devices are illustrated, such as electrochromic devices, touch sensors, solar cells and transistors. Finally, we discuss the advantages of transparent nanopaper compared to conventional flexible plastic substrate and the existing challenges to be tackled in order to realize this promising potential.

Activation of visible up-conversion luminescence in transparent and conducting ZnO:Er:Yb films by laser annealing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lluscà, M.; López-Vidrier, J.; Lauzurica, S.; Sánchez-Aniorte, M.I.; Antony, A.; Molpeceres, C.; Hernández, S.; Garrido, B.; Bertomeu, J.

2015-01-01

Transparent and conducting ZnO:Er:Yb thin films with visible up-conversion (660-nm emission under 980-nm excitation) were fabricated by RF magnetron sputtering. The as-deposited films were found to be transparent and conducting and the activation of the Er ions in these films to produce up-conversion luminescence was achieved by different post-deposition annealing treatments in air, vacuum or by laser annealing using a Nd:YVO 4 laser. The structural, electrical and optical properties and the up-conversion efficiency of these films were found to be strongly influenced by the annealing method, and a detailed study is reported in this paper. It has been demonstrated that, although the air annealing was the most efficient in terms of up-conversion, laser annealing was the only method capable of activating Er ions while preserving the electrical conductivity of the doped films. It has been shown that a minimum energy was needed in laser annealing to optically activate the rare earth ions in the ZnO host material to produce up-conversion. Up-converting and transparent conducting ZnO:Er:Yb films with an electrical resistivity of 5×10 −2 Ω cm and transparency ~80% in the visible wavelength range has been achieved by laser annealing. - Highlights: • Transparent and conducting ZnO:Er:Yb films were grown via magnetron sputtering. • Post-annealing ZnO:Er:Yb is needed to optically activate Er ions. • Visible up-conversion emission at 660 nm is observed under 980 nm excitation. • A transparent and conducting up-converter is achieved by laser annealing

Hybrid tandem photovoltaic devices with a transparent conductive interconnecting recombination layer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Taehee; Choi, Jin Young; Jeon, Jun Hong; Kim, Youn-Su; Kim, Bong-Soo; Lee, Doh-Kwon; Kim, Honggon; Han, Seunghee; Kim, Kyungkon

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► This work enhanced power conversion efficiency of the hybrid tandem solar cell from 1.0% to 2.6%. ► The interfacial series resistance of the tandem solar cell was eliminated by inserting ITO layer. ► This work shows the feasibility of the highly efficient hybrid tandem solar cells. -- Abstract: We demonstrate hybrid tandem photovoltaic devices with a transparent conductive interconnecting recombination layer. The series-connected hybrid tandem photovoltaic devices were developed by combining hydrogenated amorphous silicon (a-Si:H) and polymer-based organic photovoltaics (OPVs). In order to enhance the interfacial connection between the subcells, we employed highly transparent and conductive indium tin oxide (ITO) thin layer. By using the ITO interconnecting layer, the power conversion efficiency of the hybrid tandem solar cell was enhanced from 1.0% (V OC = 1.041 V, J SC = 2.97 mA/cm 2 , FF = 32.3%) to 2.6% (V OC = 1.336 V, J SC = 4.65 mA/cm 2 , FF = 41.98%) due to the eliminated interfacial series resistance.

Highly conductive, transparent flexible films based on open rings of multi-walled carbon nanotubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ko, Wen-Yin; Su, Jun-Wei; Guo, Chian-Hua; Fu, Shu-Juan; Hsu, Chuen-Yuan; Lin, Kuan-Jiuh

2011-01-01

Open rings of multi-walled carbon nanotubes were stacked to form porous networks on a poly(ethylene terephthalate) substrate to form a flexible conducting film (MWCNT-PET) with good electrical conductivity and transparency by a combination of ultrasonic atomization and spin-coating technique. To enhance the electric flexibility, we spin-coated a cast film of poly(vinyl alcohol) onto the MWCNT-PET substrate, which then underwent a thermo-compression process. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy of the cross-sectional morphology illustrates that the film has a robust network with a thickness of ∼ 175 nm, and it remarkably exhibits a sheet resistance of approximately 370 Ω/sq with ∼ 77% transmittance at 550 nm even after 500 bending cycles. This electrical conductivity is much superior to that of other MWCNT-based transparent flexible films.

Novel transparent conducting oxide technology for solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bishop, P.T.; Sutton, P.A.; Gardener, M.; Wakefield, G.

2005-07-01

This report outlines the development of both n- and p-type transparent Conducting Oxide (TCO) materials and the demonstrated feasibility of economic production of TCO films by deposition techniques. Descriptions are given of the four main tasks of the project with Task A concentrating on material design and synthesis covering the new precursor to zinc oxide thin films and selection of polymers for formulation; Task B dealing with film formation involving film deposition by spin coating, screen printing, inkjet printing, dip coating and chemical vapour deposition; Task C concerning performance evaluation; and Task D examining manufacturing process development. The prospects for commercialisation are explored and recommendation for future work are considered.

Development and applications of transparent conductive nanocellulose paper

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Shaohui; Lee, Pooi See

2017-01-01

Abstract Increasing attention has been paid to the next generation of ‘green’ electronic devices based on renewable nanocellulose, owing to its low roughness, good thermal stability and excellent optical properties. Various proof-of-concept transparent nanopaper-based electronic devices have been fabricated; these devices exhibit excellent flexibility, bendability and even foldability. In this review, we summarize the recent progress of transparent nanopaper that uses different types of nanocellulose, including pure nanocellulose paper and composite nanocellulose paper. The latest development of transparent and flexible nanopaper electronic devices are illustrated, such as electrochromic devices, touch sensors, solar cells and transistors. Finally, we discuss the advantages of transparent nanopaper compared to conventional flexible plastic substrate and the existing challenges to be tackled in order to realize this promising potential. PMID:28970870

Transparent conductive zinc oxide basics and applications in thin film solar cells

CERN Document Server

Klein, Andreas; Rech, Bernd

2008-01-01

Zinc oxide (ZnO) belongs to the class of transparent conducting oxides which can be used as transparent electrodes in electronic devices or heated windows. In this book the material properties of, the deposition technologies for, and applications of zinc oxide in thin film solar cells are described in a comprehensive manner. Structural, morphological, optical and electronic properties of ZnO are treated in this review. The editors and authors of this book are specialists in deposition, analysis and fabrication of thin-film solar cells and especially of ZnO. This book is intended as an overview and a data collection for students, engineers and scientist.

Laser Processing of Carbon Nanotube Transparent Conducting Films

Science.gov (United States)

Mann, Andrew

Transparent conducting films, or TCFs, are 2D electrical conductors with the ability to transmit light. Because of this, they are used in many popular electronics including smart phones, tablets, solar panels, and televisions. The most common material used as a TCF is indium tin oxide, or ITO. Although ITO has great electrical and optical characteristics, it is expensive, brittle, and difficult to pattern. These limitations have led researchers toward other materials for the next generation of displays and touch panels. The most promising material for next generation TCFs is carbon nanotubes, or CNTs. CNTs are cylindrical tubes of carbon no more than a few atoms thick. They have different electrical and optical properties depending on their atomic structure, and are extremely strong. As an electrode, they conduct electricity through an array of randomly dispersed tubes. The array is highly transparent because of gaps between the tubes, and size and optical properties of the CNTs. Many research groups have tried making CNT TCFs with opto-electric properties similar to ITO but have difficultly achieving high conductivity. This is partly attributed to impurities from fabrication and a mix of different tube types, but is mainly caused by low junction conductivity. In functionalized nanotubes, junction conductivity is impaired by covalently bonded molecules added to the sidewalls of the tubes. The addition of this molecule, known as functionalization, is designed to facilitate CNT dispersion in a solvent by adding properties of the molecule to the CNTs. While necessary for a good solution, functionalization decreases the conductivity in the CNT array by creating defects in the tube's structures and preventing direct inter-carbon bonding. This research investigates removing the functional coating (after tube deposition) by laser processing. Laser light is able to preferentially heat the CNTs because of their optical and electrical properties. Through local conduction

Superior thermal conductivity of transparent polymer nanocomposites with a crystallized alumina membrane

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Md. Poostforush

2014-04-01

Full Text Available The properties of novel thermoconductive and optically transparent nanocomposites have been reported. The composites were prepared by the impregnation of thermoset resin into crystallized anodic aluminum oxide (AAO. Crystallized AAO synthesized by annealing amorphous AAO membrane at 1200°C. Although through-plane thermal conductivity of nanocomposites improved up to 1.13 W•m–1•K–1 (39 vol% alumina but their transparency was preserved (Tλ550 nm ~ 72%. Integrated annealed alumina phase, low refractive index mismatch between resin and alumina and formation of nano-optical fibers through the membrane resulted in such marvel combination. This report shows a great potential of these types of nanocomposites in ‘heat management’ of lightening devices.

Transparent Conducting Films with Multilayered Structures Formed by Carbon Nanotubes and Reduced Graphene Oxides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kang, Jie Hun; Jang, Hyun Chul; Choi, Jung Mi; Hyeon, Jae Young; Sok, Jung Hyun

2014-01-01

The replacement for indium tin oxide (ITO) in electronic displays should have comparable optical transmittance and electrical conductivity while being easy to source and manufacture. However, novel materials such as single walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) and reduced graphene oxides (RGOs) are incapable of addressing these challenges. We demonstrate a simple method to fabricate good transparent conductive films (TCFs) by combining and leveraging the superior optical transparency of RGOs and the excellent electrical conductivity of SWCNTs. This method affords thin multilayers of SWCNTs and RGOs with excellent optical and electrical properties because these properties are correlated with spraying time and the amount of SWCNTs or RGOs. In general, transmittance is advantageous to RGO as conductance is to CNTs. With a view to finding good TCFs with reduced sheet resistance, but with little sacrifice of transmittance, it is natural to explore the combination of CNT and RGO. The sandwiched multilayer of SWCNTs and RGOs exhibited a low sheet resistance of 214.2 Ω/sq, which was comparable to that of SWCNTs, and a transmittance of 60% at a wavelength of 550 nm. To further reduce the sheet resistance and improve the transparency of the multilayer TCFs, Au doping was carried out. The doping, in combination with controlled spraying of the amount of SWCNTs and RGOs, led to multilayers with resistance/transmittance combinations of 141.3 Ω/sq and 70% and 371.5 Ω/sq and 83%. These properties meet the requisite criteria for an ITO replacement.

Transparent conductive oxides and alternative transparent electrodes for organic photovoltaics and OLEDs; Transparente leitfaehige Elektroden. Oxide und alternative Materialien fuer die organische Photovoltaik und OLEDs

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mueller-Meskamp, Lars; Sachse, Christoph; Kim, Yong Hyun; Furno, Mauro [Technische Univ. Dresden (DE). Inst. fuer Angewandte Photophysik (IAPP); May, Christian [Fraunhofer Institut fuer Photonische Mikrosysteme (IPMS), Dresden (Germany); Leo, Karl [Technische Univ. Dresden (DE). Inst. fuer Angewandte Photophysik (IAPP); Fraunhofer Institut fuer Photonische Mikrosysteme (IPMS), Dresden (Germany)

2012-08-15

Organic, photoactive devices, such as OLEDs or organic solar cells, currently use indium tin oxide (ITO) as transparent electrode. Whereas ITO is industry-proven for many years and shows very good electrical and optical properties, its application for low-cost and flexible devices might not be optimal. For such applications innovative technologies such as network-based metal nanowire or carbon nanotube electrodes, graphene, conductive polymers, metal thin-films and alternative transparent conductive oxides emerge. Although some of these technologies are rather experimental and far from application, some of them have the potential to replace ITO in selected applications. (orig.)

Plasmonic transparent conductors

Science.gov (United States)

Liapis, Andreas C.; Sfeir, Matthew Y.; Black, Charles T.

2016-09-01

Many of today's technological applications, such as solar cells, light-emitting diodes, displays, and touch screens, require materials that are simultaneously optically transparent and electrically conducting. Here we explore transparent conductors based on the excitation of surface plasmons in nanostructured metal films. We measure both the optical and electrical properties of films perforated with nanometer-scale features and optimize the design parameters in order to maximize optical transmission without sacrificing electrical conductivity. We demonstrate that plasmonic transparent conductors can out-perform indium tin oxide in terms of both their transparency and their conductivity.

Stable iodide doping induced by photonic curing for carbon nanotube transparent conductive films

Science.gov (United States)

Wachi, Atsushi; Nishikawa, Hiroyuki; Zhou, Ying; Azumi, Reiko

2018-06-01

Doping has become crucial for achieving stable and high-performance conductive transparent carbon nanotube (CNT) films. In this study, we systematically investigate the doping effects of a few materials including alkali metal iodides, nonmetal iodide, and metals. We demonstrate that photonic curing can enhance the doping effects, and correspondingly improve the conductivity of CNT films, and that such iodides have better doping effects than metals. In particular, doping with a nonmetal compound (NH4I) shows the largest potential to improve the conductivity of CNT films. Typically, doping with metal iodides reduces the sheet resistance (R S) of CNT films with 70–80% optical transmittances at λ = 550 nm from 600–2400 to 250–440 Ω/square, whereas doping with NH4I reduces R S to 57 and 84 Ω/square at 74 and 84% optical transmittances, respectively. Interestingly, such a doped CNT film exhibits only a slight increase in sheet resistance under an extreme environment of high temperature (85 °C) and high relative humidity (85%) for 350 h. The results suggest that photonic-curing-induced iodide doping is a promising approach to producing high-performance conductive transparent CNT films.

Uniformly embedded silver nanomesh as highly bendable transparent conducting electrode

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Choi, Hak-Jong; Choo, Soyoung; Jung, Pil-Hoon; Shin, Ju-Hyeon; Kim, Yang-Doo; Lee, Heon

2015-01-01

Ag-nanomesh-based highly bendable conducting electrodes are developed using a combination of metal nanotransfer printing and embossing for the 6-inch wafer scale. Two Ag nanomeshes, including pitch sizes of 7.5 and 10 μm, are used to obtain highly transparent (approximately 85% transmittance at a wavelength of 550 nm) and electrically conducting properties (below 10 Ω sq −1 ). The Ag nanomeshes are also distinguished according to the fabrication process, which is called transferred or embedded Ag nanomesh on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate, in order to compare their stability against bending stress. Then the enhancement of bending stability when the Ag nanomesh is embedded in the PET substrate is confirmed. (paper)

Uniformly embedded silver nanomesh as highly bendable transparent conducting electrode

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Hak-Jong; Choo, Soyoung; Jung, Pil-Hoon; Shin, Ju-Hyeon; Kim, Yang-Doo; Lee, Heon

2015-02-01

Ag-nanomesh-based highly bendable conducting electrodes are developed using a combination of metal nanotransfer printing and embossing for the 6-inch wafer scale. Two Ag nanomeshes, including pitch sizes of 7.5 and 10 μm, are used to obtain highly transparent (approximately 85% transmittance at a wavelength of 550 nm) and electrically conducting properties (below 10 Ω sq-1). The Ag nanomeshes are also distinguished according to the fabrication process, which is called transferred or embedded Ag nanomesh on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate, in order to compare their stability against bending stress. Then the enhancement of bending stability when the Ag nanomesh is embedded in the PET substrate is confirmed.

A simple and flexible route to large-area conductive transparent graphene thin-films

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Arapov, K.; Goryachev, A.; With, de G.; Friedrich, H.

2015-01-01

Solution-processed conductive, flexible and transparent graphene thin films continue drawing attention from science and technology due to their potential for many electrical applications. Here, an up-scalable method for the solution processing of graphite to graphene and further to self-assembled

The structural and electro-optical characteristics of AZO/Cr:Cu/AZO transparent conductive film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lin, Tien-Chai; Huang, Wen-Chang; Tsai, Fu-Chun

2015-01-01

A novel triple-layered transparent conductive film, AZO/Cr:Cu/AZO (ACCA), was presented in the paper. The structural and electro-optical properties of the ACCA film were discussed. The thickness of the middle metal layer was constant and those of the AZO layers were varied. The ACCA film shows an obvious ZnO (002) c-axis preferential growth. No diffraction peaks related to Cr and Cu were observed through x-ray diffraction analysis. The middle Cr:Cu layer showed a thickness of 8.16 nm with a continuous and amorphous structure by the observation of a high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). For the electro-optical characteristic, a best figure of merit (FOM) value of 3.54 × 10 −3 Ω −1 with a corresponding transmittance of 85% was obtained at the thickness of 116 nm of ACCA film. The high FOM value of the film is due to the improvement of conductivity and small sacrifices of transparency. - Highlights: • A novel triple-layered transparent conductive film, AZO/Cr:Cu/AZO is developed. • Chromium is added to copper to reduce the oxidation–reduction reaction. • The film has a FOM of 3.54 × 10 −3 Ω −1 with a corresponding transmittance of 85%. • The Cr:Cu layer shows a continuous and amorphous structure

The structural and electro-optical characteristics of AZO/Cr:Cu/AZO transparent conductive film

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lin, Tien-Chai [Department of Electrical Engineering, Kun Shan University, No. 195, Kun-Da Road, Yung-Kang Dist., Tainan 71003, Taiwan, ROC (China); Huang, Wen-Chang, E-mail: wchuang@mail.ksu.edu.tw [Department of Electro-Optical Engineering, Kun Shan University, No. 195, Kun-Da Road, Yung-Kang Dist., Tainan 71003, Taiwan, ROC (China); Tsai, Fu-Chun [Department of Electro-Optical Engineering, Kun Shan University, No. 195, Kun-Da Road, Yung-Kang Dist., Tainan 71003, Taiwan, ROC (China)

2015-08-31

A novel triple-layered transparent conductive film, AZO/Cr:Cu/AZO (ACCA), was presented in the paper. The structural and electro-optical properties of the ACCA film were discussed. The thickness of the middle metal layer was constant and those of the AZO layers were varied. The ACCA film shows an obvious ZnO (002) c-axis preferential growth. No diffraction peaks related to Cr and Cu were observed through x-ray diffraction analysis. The middle Cr:Cu layer showed a thickness of 8.16 nm with a continuous and amorphous structure by the observation of a high-resolution transmission electron microscopy (HR-TEM). For the electro-optical characteristic, a best figure of merit (FOM) value of 3.54 × 10{sup −3} Ω{sup −1} with a corresponding transmittance of 85% was obtained at the thickness of 116 nm of ACCA film. The high FOM value of the film is due to the improvement of conductivity and small sacrifices of transparency. - Highlights: • A novel triple-layered transparent conductive film, AZO/Cr:Cu/AZO is developed. • Chromium is added to copper to reduce the oxidation–reduction reaction. • The film has a FOM of 3.54 × 10{sup −3} Ω{sup −1} with a corresponding transmittance of 85%. • The Cr:Cu layer shows a continuous and amorphous structure.

Facile Preparation of Carbon-Nanotube-based 3-Dimensional Transparent Conducting Networks for Flexible Noncontact Sensing Device

KAUST Repository

Tai, Yanlong; Lubineau, Gilles

2016-01-01

Here, we report the controllable fabrication of transparent conductive films (TCFs) for moisture-sensing applications based on heating-rate-triggered, 3-dimensional porous conducting networks of single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT)/poly(3

Roll-offset printed transparent conducting electrode for organic solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kim, Inyoung; Kwak, Sun-Woo; Ju, Yeonkyeong; Park, Gun-Young; Lee, Taik-Min; Jang, Yunseok; Choi, Young-Man; Kang, Dongwoo

2015-01-01

Transparent conducting electrodes (TCEs) were developed through the roll-offset printing of Ag grid mesh patterns for the application of all-solution processed organic solar cells (OSCs). Due to the remarkable printability of roll-offset printing, the printed TCEs did not show the step coverage problem of subsequent thin layers, which was a chronic problem in other printing techniques. The control of ink cohesion was verified as a critical factor for the high printing quality, which was optimized by adding a polyurethane diol of 2 wt.%. The tensile strength of optimized Ag ink was 322 mN, which led to the clear patterning of Ag nanoparticles. The printed TCEs with different mesh densities of the Ag grid were designed to have a similar property of indium tin oxide (ITO). The measured sheet resistance was 13 Ω/□, and optical transmittance was 86%, including the glass substrate, which was found to be independent of wavelength in the visible spectrum, in contrast with the optical transmittance of ITO. To evaluate the TCE performance as bottom electrodes, all-solution processed OSCs were fabricated on top of the TCEs. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the OSCs increased with the increments of the mesh density due to the distinctive increase of the short circuit current density (J sc ), notwithstanding the similar transmittance and sheet resistance of the TCEs. In comparison with ITO, a higher PCE of OSCs was obtained because the printed TCEs with a high mesh density were able to facilitate effective current collection, leading to a significant increase of J sc . - Highlights: • Roll-offset printing provided a remarkable printability of Ag nano-ink. • Control of ink cohesion played a critical role on the patterning of Ag nano-ink. • Printed Ag mesh was used as a transparent conducting electrode. • Transparency and sheet resistance of printed Ag mesh can be designed simply. • Printed Ag mesh was effective for the current collection of organic solar

Roll-offset printed transparent conducting electrode for organic solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kim, Inyoung, E-mail: ikim@kimm.re.kr; Kwak, Sun-Woo; Ju, Yeonkyeong; Park, Gun-Young; Lee, Taik-Min; Jang, Yunseok; Choi, Young-Man; Kang, Dongwoo

2015-04-01

Transparent conducting electrodes (TCEs) were developed through the roll-offset printing of Ag grid mesh patterns for the application of all-solution processed organic solar cells (OSCs). Due to the remarkable printability of roll-offset printing, the printed TCEs did not show the step coverage problem of subsequent thin layers, which was a chronic problem in other printing techniques. The control of ink cohesion was verified as a critical factor for the high printing quality, which was optimized by adding a polyurethane diol of 2 wt.%. The tensile strength of optimized Ag ink was 322 mN, which led to the clear patterning of Ag nanoparticles. The printed TCEs with different mesh densities of the Ag grid were designed to have a similar property of indium tin oxide (ITO). The measured sheet resistance was 13 Ω/□, and optical transmittance was 86%, including the glass substrate, which was found to be independent of wavelength in the visible spectrum, in contrast with the optical transmittance of ITO. To evaluate the TCE performance as bottom electrodes, all-solution processed OSCs were fabricated on top of the TCEs. The power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the OSCs increased with the increments of the mesh density due to the distinctive increase of the short circuit current density (J{sub sc}), notwithstanding the similar transmittance and sheet resistance of the TCEs. In comparison with ITO, a higher PCE of OSCs was obtained because the printed TCEs with a high mesh density were able to facilitate effective current collection, leading to a significant increase of J{sub sc}. - Highlights: • Roll-offset printing provided a remarkable printability of Ag nano-ink. • Control of ink cohesion played a critical role on the patterning of Ag nano-ink. • Printed Ag mesh was used as a transparent conducting electrode. • Transparency and sheet resistance of printed Ag mesh can be designed simply. • Printed Ag mesh was effective for the current collection of organic

VO{sub x} effectively doping CVD-graphene for transparent conductive films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ji, Qinghua; Shi, Liangjing [State Key Laboratory of High Performance Ceramics and Superfine Microstructure, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1295 Dingxi Road, Shanghai 200050 (China); Zhang, Qinghong [State Key Laboratory of Modification of Chemical Fibers and Polymer Materials, College of Material Science and Engineering, Donghua University, 2999 North Renmin Road, Shanghai 201620 (China); Wang, Weiqi; Zheng, Huifeng [State Key Laboratory of High Performance Ceramics and Superfine Microstructure, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1295 Dingxi Road, Shanghai 200050 (China); Zhang, Yuzhi [The Key Laboratory of Inorganic Coating Materials, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences,1295 Dingxi Road, Shanghai 200050 (China); Liu, Yangqiao, E-mail: yqliu@mail.sic.ac.cn [State Key Laboratory of High Performance Ceramics and Superfine Microstructure, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1295 Dingxi Road, Shanghai 200050 (China); Sun, Jing, E-mail: jingsun@mail.sic.ac.cn [State Key Laboratory of High Performance Ceramics and Superfine Microstructure, Shanghai Institute of Ceramics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1295 Dingxi Road, Shanghai 200050 (China)

2016-11-30

Highlights: • Doping process operated easily. • Sheet resistance decreased efficiently after doping. • Sheet resistance of doped graphene is stable after exposed in the air. • Mechanism of doping process is studied. - Abstract: Chemical vapor deposition(CVD)-synthesized graphene is potentially an alternative for tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) transparent conductive films (TCFs), however its sheet resistance is still too high to meet many demands. Vanadium oxide has been widely applied as smart window materials, however, no study has been reported to use it as dopant to improve the conductivity of graphene TCFs. In this study, we firstly reported that VO{sub x} doping can effectively lower the sheet resistance of CVD-graphene films while keeping its good optical properties, whose transmittance is as high as 86–90%. The optimized VO{sub x}-doped graphene exhibits a sheet resistance as low as 176 Ω/□, which decreases by 56% compared to the undoped graphene films. The doping process is convenient, stable, economical and easy to operate. What is more, VO{sub x} can effectively increase the work function(WF) of the film, making it more appropriate for use in solar cells. The evolution of the VO{sub x} species annealed at different temperatures below 400 °C has been detailed studied for the first time, based on which the doping mechanism is proposed. The prepared VO{sub x} doped graphene is expected to be a promising candidate for transparent conductive film purposes.

Spray-Deposited Large-Area Copper Nanowire Transparent Conductive Electrodes and Their Uses for Touch Screen Applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Chu, Hsun-Chen; Chang, Yen-Chen; Lin, Yow; Chang, Shu-Hao; Chang, Wei-Chung; Li, Guo-An; Tuan, Hsing-Yu

2016-05-25

Large-area conducting transparent conducting electrodes (TCEs) were prepared by a fast, scalable, and low-cost spray deposition of copper nanowire (CuNW) dispersions. Thin, long, and pure copper nanowires were obtained via the seed-mediated growth in an organic solvent-based synthesis. The mean length and diameter of nanowires are, respectively, 37.7 μm and 46 nm, corresponding to a high-mean-aspect ratio of 790. These wires were spray-deposited onto a glass substrate to form a nanowire conducting network which function as a TCE. CuNW TCEs exhibit high-transparency and high-conductivity since their relatively long lengths are advantageous in lowering in the sheet resistance. For example, a 2 × 2 cm(2) transparent nanowire electrode exhibits transmittance of T = 90% with a sheet resistance as low as 52.7 Ω sq(-1). Large-area sizes (>50 cm(2)) of CuNW TCEs were also prepared by the spray coating method and assembled as resistive touch screens that can be integrated with a variety of devices, including LED lighting array, a computer, electric motors, and audio electronic devices, showing the capability to make diverse sizes and functionalities of CuNW TCEs by the reported method.

Preparation of transparent conducting zinc oxide films by rf reactive sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vasanelli, L.; Valentini, A.; Losacco, A.

1986-01-01

Transparent conducting zinc oxide films have been prepared by reactive sputtering in a Ar/H/sub 2/ mixture. The optical and electrical properties of the films are presented and discussed. The effects of some post-deposition thermal treatment have been also investigated. ZnO/CdTe heterojunctions have been prepared by sputtering ZnO films on CdTe single crystals. The photovoltaic conversion efficiencies of the obtained solar cells was 6.8%

A Facile Method for Preparing Transparent, Conductive, and Paper-Like Silver Nanowire Films

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Yajie Wang

2011-01-01

Full Text Available Transparent, conductive, and flexible silver nanowire (AgNW films have been fabricated by a facile two-step method. Firstly, the well-dispersed AgNW suspension is vacuum filtered using mixed esters of cellulose (MCE membranes as filters. Then, the AgNW-MCE films are treated with acetone vapor. After the infiltration of acetone vapor, the white and porous MCE membranes change into transparent and pore-free, and AgNW-MCE films are obtained with extraordinary optical, conductive, and mechanical properties. An optimal result is obtained with transmittance of 85% at 550 nm and sheet resistance about 50 Ohm/sq. The flexibility of AgNW-MCE films is remarkable, which is comparable to that of the AgNW film on flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET. More important, AgNW-MCE films show an excellent adhesion to the substrate, which causes a stable electrical conductivity even after scotch tape test and finger friction test. As a result of improved adhesion to the substrate, the sheet resistance of AgNW-MCE films is about 20% smaller than that of AgNW-PET films.

Development and applications of transparent conductive nanocellulose paper

OpenAIRE

Li, Shaohui; Lee, Pooi See

2017-01-01

Abstract Increasing attention has been paid to the next generation of ‘green’ electronic devices based on renewable nanocellulose, owing to its low roughness, good thermal stability and excellent optical properties. Various proof-of-concept transparent nanopaper-based electronic devices have been fabricated; these devices exhibit excellent flexibility, bendability and even foldability. In this review, we summarize the recent progress of transparent nanopaper that uses different types of nanoc...

Transparent conducting polymer electrolyte by addition of lithium to the molecular complex chitosane-poly(aminopropyl siloxane)

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fuentes, S.; Retuert, P.J.; Gonzalez, Guillermo

2003-06-30

Transparent lithium-ion conducting films were prepared by adding lithium perchlorate to a mixture of chitosane (CHI) and poly(aminopropylsiloxane) (pAPS) in a molar ratio 0.6:1 by sol-gel methods. The morphological and molecular properties, determined by scanning electron microscopy and FT-IR, respectively, depend on the lithium salt concentration. The same techniques were also used for performing a 'titration' of the capacity of the film for incorporating lithium salt. Results show that about 0.8 mol lithium salt per mol chitosane can be added before the product losses the transparence and molecular compatibility characteristic of the pristine CHI/pAPS polymer complex. When lithium salt addition reaches the tolerance limit, anisotropically oriented patterns are observed in the hybrid films. Both transparence and ionic conductivity of the product appear to be related to the layered nature of formed nanocomposites. The properties of obtained films may be furthermore rationalized considering the chemical functionality and the Lewis donor-acceptor affinity of the components.

Features of Random Metal Nanowire Networks with Application in Transparent Conducting Electrodes

KAUST Repository

Maloth, Thirupathi

2017-05-01

Among the alternatives to conventional Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) used in making transparent conducting electrodes, the random metal nanowire (NW) networks are considered to be superior offering performance at par with ITO. The performance is measured in terms of sheet resistance and optical transmittance. However, as the electrical properties of such random networks are achieved thanks to a percolation network, a minimum size of the electrodes is needed so it actually exceeds the representative volume element (RVE) of the material and the macroscopic electrical properties are achieved. There is not much information about the compatibility of this minimum RVE size with the resolution actually needed in electronic devices. Furthermore, the efficiency of NWs in terms of electrical conduction is overlooked. In this work, we address the above industrially relevant questions - 1) The minimum size of electrodes that can be made based on the dimensions of NWs and the material coverage. For this, we propose a morphology based classification in defining the RVE size and we also compare the same with that is based on macroscopic electrical properties stabilization. 2) The amount of NWs that do not participate in electrical conduction, hence of no practical use. The results presented in this thesis are a design guide to experimentalists to design transparent electrodes with more optimal usage of the material.

Preparation and Properties of Silver Nanowire-Based Transparent Conductive Composite Films

Science.gov (United States)

Tian, Ji-Li; Zhang, Hua-Yu; Wang, Hai-Jun

2016-06-01

Silver nanowire-based transparent conductive composite films with different structures were successfully prepared using various methods, including liquid polyol, magnetron sputtering and spin coating. The experimental results revealed that the optical transmittance of all different structural composite films decreased slightly (1-3%) compared to pure films. However, the electrical conductivity of all composite films had a great improvement. Under the condition that the optical transmittance was greater than 78% over the wavelength range of 400-800 nm, the AgNW/PVA/AgNW film became a conductor, while the AZO/AgNW/AZO film and the ITO/AgNW/ITO film showed 88.9% and 94% reductions, respectively, for the sheet resistance compared with pure films. In addition, applying a suitable mechanical pressure can improve the conductivity of AgNW-based composite films.

Bromination of Graphene: A New Route to Making High Performance Transparent Conducting Electrodes with Low Optical Losses

KAUST Repository

Mansour, Ahmed; Dey, Sukumar; Amassian, Aram; Tanielian, Minas H.

2015-01-01

The unique optical and electrical properties of graphene have triggered great interest in its application as a transparent conducting electrode material and significant effort has been invested in achieving high conductivity while maintaining

Bromination of graphene: a new route to making high performance transparent conducting electrodes with low optical losses

KAUST Repository

Mansour, Ahmed; Amassian, Aram; Tanielian, Minas H.

2015-01-01

The high optical transmittance, electrical conductivity, flexibility and chemical stability of graphene have triggered great interest in its application as a transparent conducting electrode material and as a potential replacement for indium doped

Transparent conductive Ga-doped ZnO films fabricated by MOCVD

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Behrends, Arne; Wagner, Alexander; Al-Suleiman, Mohamed Aid Mansur; Waag, Andreas; Bakin, Andrey [Institute of Semiconductor Technology, University of Technology Braunschweig, Hans-Sommer-Str. 66, 38106 Braunschweig (Germany); Lugauer, Hans-Juergen; Strassburg, Martin; Walter, Robert; Weimar, Andreas [OSRAM Opto Semiconductors GmbH, Leibnizstr. 4, 93055 Regensburg (Germany)

2012-04-15

Transparent conductive oxides (TCOs) are used for a variety of different applications, e.g., in solar cells and light emitting diodes (LEDs). Mostly, sputtering is used, which often results in a degradation of the underlying semiconductor material. In this work we report on a ''soft'' method for the fabrication of ZnO films as TCO layers by using metal organic chemical vapor deposition (MOCVD) at particularly low temperatures. The MOCVD approach has been studied focusing on the TCO key issues: fabrication temperature, morphology, optical, and electrical properties. Very smooth ZnO films with rms values down to 0.8 nm were fabricated at a substrate temperature of only 300 C. Ga-doping is well controllable even for high carrier concentrations up to 2 x 10{sup 20} cm{sup -3}, which is above the Mott-density leading to metallic-like behavior of the films. Furthermore all films show excellent optical transparency in the visible spectral range. As a consequence, our MOCVD approach is well suited for the soft fabrication of ZnO-based TCO layers. (Copyright copyright 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

High adhesion transparent conducting films using graphene oxide hybrid carbon nanotubes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Da, Shi-Xun; Wang, Jie; Geng, Hong-Zhang; Jia, Song-Lin; Xu, Chun-Xia; Li, Lin-Ge; Shi, Pei-Pei; Li, Guangfen

2017-01-01

Graphical abstract: The GO hybrid CNTs to fabricate TCFs could dramatically enhance the conductivity, adhesion, flatness, and wettability of the films, all these improvements are advantageous for optoelectronic applications. - Highlights: • TCFs were fabricated using GO/CNT hybrid inks by a simple spray method. • Conductivity of TCFs was improved through the hybrid of GO/CNT, sheet resistance of TCFs was 146 Ω/sq at the transmittance of 86.0% when the ratio of GO/CNT got 1.5:1.0. • The flatness and wettability of TCFs were improved dramatically, which is advantageous for the solution-based processing of organic electronics for spraying and printing. • The adhesion of the TCFs increased dramatically with the raise of the ratio GO/CNT hybrid. - Abstract: Flexible transparent conducting films (TCFs) with carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have attracted more and more attention for their wide range of potential applications. While, there are still some problems to be solved on several aspects. In this study, a graphene oxide/carbon nanotube (GO/CNT) hybrid TCF was fabricated through the simple spray coating method. GO sheets were introduced to form new electron transporting channels. It was found that the best optoelectronic property films were fabricated when the ratio of GO/CNT is 1.5:1.0, which the sheet resistance of the film was found to be 146 Ω/sq at the transmittance of 86.0%. Due to the two-dimensional structure and the oxidation groups of GO sheets, flatness and wettability of the electrode surface was improved obviously. Adhesion factor of the TCFs was calculated by the change of transparent and sheet resistance after trial test, the addition of GO sheets enhanced the adhesion dramatically and the mechanism was analyzed. Improvements of conductivity, flatness, wettability and adhesion above are all advantageous for the solution-based processing of organic electronics for spraying and printing.

High adhesion transparent conducting films using graphene oxide hybrid carbon nanotubes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Da, Shi-Xun; Wang, Jie; Geng, Hong-Zhang, E-mail: genghz@tjpu.edu.cn; Jia, Song-Lin; Xu, Chun-Xia; Li, Lin-Ge; Shi, Pei-Pei; Li, Guangfen

2017-01-15

Graphical abstract: The GO hybrid CNTs to fabricate TCFs could dramatically enhance the conductivity, adhesion, flatness, and wettability of the films, all these improvements are advantageous for optoelectronic applications. - Highlights: • TCFs were fabricated using GO/CNT hybrid inks by a simple spray method. • Conductivity of TCFs was improved through the hybrid of GO/CNT, sheet resistance of TCFs was 146 Ω/sq at the transmittance of 86.0% when the ratio of GO/CNT got 1.5:1.0. • The flatness and wettability of TCFs were improved dramatically, which is advantageous for the solution-based processing of organic electronics for spraying and printing. • The adhesion of the TCFs increased dramatically with the raise of the ratio GO/CNT hybrid. - Abstract: Flexible transparent conducting films (TCFs) with carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have attracted more and more attention for their wide range of potential applications. While, there are still some problems to be solved on several aspects. In this study, a graphene oxide/carbon nanotube (GO/CNT) hybrid TCF was fabricated through the simple spray coating method. GO sheets were introduced to form new electron transporting channels. It was found that the best optoelectronic property films were fabricated when the ratio of GO/CNT is 1.5:1.0, which the sheet resistance of the film was found to be 146 Ω/sq at the transmittance of 86.0%. Due to the two-dimensional structure and the oxidation groups of GO sheets, flatness and wettability of the electrode surface was improved obviously. Adhesion factor of the TCFs was calculated by the change of transparent and sheet resistance after trial test, the addition of GO sheets enhanced the adhesion dramatically and the mechanism was analyzed. Improvements of conductivity, flatness, wettability and adhesion above are all advantageous for the solution-based processing of organic electronics for spraying and printing.

Amorphous and crystalline In{sub 2}O{sub 3}-based transparent conducting films for photovoltaics

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koida, Takashi [Research Center for Photovoltaics, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology, Tsukuba (Japan)

2017-02-15

We reported solar cells with reduced electrical and optical losses using hydrogen-doped In{sub 2}O{sub 3} (In{sub 2}O{sub 3}:H) transparent conducting layers with low sheet resistance and high transparence characteristics. The transparent conducting oxide (TCO) films were prepared by solid-phase crystallization of amorphous (a-) In{sub 2}O{sub 3}:H films grown by magnetron sputtering. The polycrystalline (poly-) In{sub 2}O{sub 3}:H films exhibited electron mobilities (over 100 cm{sup 2}V{sup -1} s{sup -1}) 2 and 3 times greater than those of conventional TCO films. This paper describes (i) the current status of the electrical properties of In{sub 2}O{sub 3}-based TCO; (ii) the structural and optoelectrical properties of the a-In{sub 2}O{sub 3}:H and poly-In{sub 2}O{sub 3}:H films, focusing on the inhomogeneity and stability characteristics of the films; and (iii) the electrical properties of bilayer TCO. The potential of these high mobility TCO films for solar cells was also described. (copyright 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim)

Flexible transparent conductive materials based on silver nanowire networks: a review

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Langley, Daniel; Giusti, Gaël; Bellet, Daniel; Mayousse, Céline; Celle, Caroline; Simonato, Jean-Pierre

2013-01-01

The class of materials combining high electrical or thermal conductivity, optical transparency and flexibility is crucial for the development of many future electronic and optoelectronic devices. Silver nanowire networks show very promising results and represent a viable alternative to the commonly used, scarce and brittle indium tin oxide. The science and technology research of such networks are reviewed to provide a better understanding of the physical and chemical properties of this nanowire-based material while opening attractive new applications. (topical review)

Carbon Nanotube Networks Reinforced by Silver Nanowires with Improved Optical Transparency and Conductivity

Science.gov (United States)

Martine, Patricia; Fakhimi, Azin; Lin, Ling; Jurewicz, Izabela; Dalton, Alan; Zakhidov, Anvar A.; Baughman, Ray H.

2015-03-01

We have fabricated highly transparent and conductive free-standing nanocomposite thin film electrodes by adding silver nanowires (AgNWs) to dry-spun Multiwall Carbon Nanotube (MWNT) aerogels. This nanocomposite exhibits desirable properties such as high optical transmittance, excellent flexibility and enhanced electrical conductivity. The incorporation of the AgNWs to the MWNT aerogels was accomplished by using a spray coating method. The optical transparency and sheet resistance of the nanocomposite was tuned by adjusting the concentration of AgNWs, back pressure and nozzle distance of the spray gun to the MWNT aerogel during deposition. As the solvent evaporated, the aerogel MWNT bundles densified via surface tension which caused the MWNT bundles to collapse. This adjustable process was responsible in forming well defined apertures that increased the nanocomposite's transmittance up to 90 percent. Via AgNWs percolation and random interconnections between separate MWNT bundles in the aerogel matrix, the sheet resistance decreased from 1 K ohm/sq to less than 100 ohm/sq. Alan G. MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute

Transparent Conducting Oxides for Photovoltaics: Manipulation of Fermi Level, Work Function and Energy Band Alignment

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Diana E. Proffit

2010-11-01

Full Text Available Doping limits, band gaps, work functions and energy band alignments of undoped and donor-doped transparent conducting oxides Zn0, In2O3, and SnO2 as accessed by X-ray and ultraviolet photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS/UPS are summarized and compared. The presented collection provides an extensive data set of technologically relevant electronic properties of photovoltaic transparent electrode materials and illustrates how these relate to the underlying defect chemistry, the dependence of surface dipoles on crystallographic orientation and/or surface termination, and Fermi level pinning.

MOCVD growth of transparent conducting Cd2SnO4 thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Metz, A.W.; Poeppelmeier, K.R.; Marks, T.J.; Lane, M.A.; Kannewurt, C.R.

2004-01-01

The first preparation of transparent conducting Cd 2 SnO 4 thin films by a simple MOCVD process is described. As-deposited films using Cd(hfa) 2 (TMEDA) (Figure), at 365 C are found to be highly crystalline with a relatively wide range of grain size of 100-300 nm. XRD indicates a cubic spinel Cd 2 SnO 4 crystal structure and the possible presence of a small amount of CdO. The films exhibit conductivities of 2170 S/cm and a bandgap of 3.3 eV, rivaling those of commercial tin-doped indium oxide. (Abstract Copyright [2004], Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Current Spreading Layer with High Transparency and Conductivity for near-ultraviolet light emitting diodes

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Lin, Li; Jensen, Flemming; Herstrøm, Berit

Transparent conductive aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) layer was deposited on GaN-based near-ultraviolet (NUV) light emitting epitaxial wafers as current spreading layer by a sputtering process. Efforts were made to improve the electrical properties of AZO in order to produce ohmic contact....

Highly transparent conductive electrode with ultra-low HAZE by grain boundary modification of aqueous solution fabricated alumina-doped zinc oxide nanocrystals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Nian, Qiong; Cheng, Gary J. [Birck Nanotechnology Center and School of Industrial Engineering, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana 47906 (United States); Callahan, Michael; Bailey, John [Greentech Solutions, Inc., Hanson, Massachusetts 02341 (United States); Look, David [Semiconductor Research Center, Wright State University, Dayton, Ohio 45435 (United States); Efstathiadis, Harry [College of Nanoscale Science and Engineering (CNSE), University of Albany, Albany, New York 12203 (United States)

2015-06-01

Commercial production of transparent conducting oxide (TCO) polycrystalline films requires high electrical conductivity with minimal degradation in optical transparency. Aqueous solution deposited TCO films would reduce production costs of TCO films but suffer from low electrical mobility, which severely degrades both electrical conductivity and optical transparency in the visible spectrum. Here, we demonstrated that grain boundary modification by ultra-violet laser crystallization (UVLC) of solution deposited aluminium-doped zinc oxide (AZO) nanocrystals results in high Hall mobility, with a corresponding dramatic improvement in AZO electrical conductance. The AZO films after laser irradiation exhibit electrical mobility up to 18.1 cm{sup 2} V{sup −1} s{sup −1} with corresponding electrical resistivity and sheet resistances as low as 1 × 10{sup −3} Ω cm and 75 Ω/sq, respectively. The high mobility also enabled a high transmittance (T) of 88%-96% at 550 nm for the UVLC films. In addition, HAZE measurement shows AZO film scattering transmittance as low as 1.8%, which is superior over most other solution deposited transparent electrode alternatives such as silver nanowires. Thus, AZO films produced by the UVLC technique have a combined figure of merit for electrical conductivity, optical transparency, and optical HAZE higher than other solution based deposition techniques and comparable to vacuumed based deposition methods.

Fabrication of textured SnO2 transparent conductive films using self-assembled Sn nanospheres

Science.gov (United States)

Fukumoto, Michitaka; Nakao, Shoichiro; Hirose, Yasushi; Hasegawa, Tetsuya

2018-06-01

We present a novel method to fabricate textured surfaces on transparent conductive SnO2 films by processing substrates through a bottom-up technique with potential for industrially scalable production. The substrate processing consists of three steps: deposition of precursor Sn films on glass substrates, formation of a self-assembled Sn nanosphere layer with reductive annealing, and conversion of Sn to SnO2 by oxidative annealing. Ta-doped SnO2 films conformally deposited on the self-assembled nanospherical SnO2 templates exhibited attractive optical and electrical properties, namely, enhanced haze values and low sheet resistances, for applications as transparent electrodes in photovoltaics.

Transparent conducting films of hierarchically nanostructured polyaniline networks on flexible substrates for high-performance gas sensors.

Science.gov (United States)

Bai, Shouli; Sun, Chaozheng; Wan, Pengbo; Wang, Cheng; Luo, Ruixian; Li, Yaping; Liu, Junfeng; Sun, Xiaoming

2015-01-21

Transparent chemical gas sensors are assembled from a transparent conducting film of hierarchically nanostructured polyaniline (PANI) networks fabricated on a flexible PET substrate, by coating silver nanowires (Ag NWs) followed by the in situ polymerization of aniline near the sacrificial Ag NW template. The sensor exhibits enhanced gas sensing performance at room temperature in both sensitivity and selectivity to NH3 compared to pure PANI film. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Al-doped ZnO/Ag grid hybrid transparent conductive electrodes fabricated using a low-temperature process

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

An, Ha-Rim; Oh, Sung-Tag [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University of Science and Technology, Seoul 139-743 (Korea, Republic of); Kim, Chang Yeoul [Future Convergence Ceramic Division, Korea Institute Ceramic Engineering and Technology (KICET), Seoul 233-5 (Korea, Republic of); Baek, Seong-Ho [Energy Research Division, Daegu Gyeongbuk Institute of Science and Technology (DGIST), Daegu 711-873 (Korea, Republic of); Park, Il-Kyu, E-mail: ikpark@ynu.ac.kr [Department of Electronic Engineering, Yeungnam University, Gyeongbuk 712-749 (Korea, Republic of); Ahn, Hyo-Jin, E-mail: hjahn@seoultech.ac.kr [Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Seoul National University of Science and Technology, Seoul 139-743 (Korea, Republic of)

2014-12-05

Highlights: • Al-doped ZnO/Ag transparent conductive electrode is fabricated at low temperature. • Performance of the hybrid transparent conductive electrode affected by the structure. • The performance enhancement mechanism is suggested. - Abstract: Al-doped ZnO (AZO)/Ag grid hybrid transparent conductive electrode (TCE) structures were fabricated at a low temperature by using electrohydrodynamic jet printing for the Ag grids and atomic layer deposition for the AZO layers. The structural investigations showed that the AZO/Ag grid hybrid structures consisted of Ag grid lines formed by Ag particles and the AZO layer covering the inter-spacing between the Ag grid lines. The Ag particles comprising the Ag grid lines were also capped by thin AZO layers, and the coverage of the AZO layers was increased with increasing the thickness of the AZO layer. Using the optimum thickness of AZO layer of 70 nm, the hybrid TCE structure showed an electrical resistivity of 5.45 × 10{sup −5} Ω cm, an optical transmittance of 80.80%, and a figure of merit value of 1.41 × 10{sup −2} Ω{sup −1}. The performance enhancement was suggested based on the microstructural investigations on the AZO/Ag grid hybrid structures.

Flexible transparent conducting films with embedded silver networks composed of bimodal-sized nanoparticles for heater application

Science.gov (United States)

Park, Ji Sun; Song, Yookyung; Park, Daseul; Kim, Yeon-Won; Kim, Yoon Jin

2018-06-01

A facile one-pot synthetic method for preparing the Ag nanoparticle inks with a bimodal size distribution was newly devised and they were successfully employed as a conducting filler to form the metal-mesh type transparent conducting electrodes on the flexible substrate. Bimodal-sized Ag nanoparticles were synthesized through the polyol process, and their size variation was occurred via finely tuned composition ratio between Ag+ ions and polymeric capping agents. The prepared bimodal-sized Ag nanoparticles exhibited the form of well-dispersed Ag nanoparticle inks without adding any dispersants and dispersion process. By filling the patterned micro-channels engraved on the flexible polymer substrate using a bimodal-sized Ag nanoparticle ink, a metal-mesh type transparent electrode (transmittance: 90% at 550 nm, haze: 1.5, area: 8 × 8 cm2) was fabricated. By applying DC voltage to the mesh type electrode, a flexible transparent joule heater was successfully achieved with a performance of 4.5 °C s‑1 heat-up rate at a low input power density.

Iridium containing honeycomb Delafossites by topotactic cation exchange.

Science.gov (United States)

Roudebush, John H; Ross, K A; Cava, R J

2016-06-07

We report the structure and magnetic properties of two new iridium-based honeycomb Delafossite compounds, Cu3NaIr2O6 and Cu3LiIr2O6, formed by a topotactic cation exchange reaction. The starting materials Na2IrO3 and Li2IrO3, which are based on layers of IrO6 octahedra in a honeycomb lattice separated by layers of alkali ions, are transformed to the title compounds by a topotactic exchange reaction through heating with CuCl below 450 °C; higher temperature reactions cause decomposition. The new compounds display dramatically different magnetic behavior from their parent compounds - Cu3NaIr2O6 has a ferromagnetic like magnetic transition at 10 K, while Cu3LiIr2O6 retains the antiferromagnetic transition temperature of its parent compound but displays significantly stronger dominance of antiferromagnetic coupling between spins. These results reveal that a surprising difference in the magnetic interactions between the magnetic Ir ions has been induced by a change in the non-magnetic interlayer species. A combination of neutron and X-ray powder diffraction is used for the structure refinement of Cu3NaIr2O6 and both compounds are compared to their parent materials.

High Transparent Conductive Aluminum-Doped Zinc Oxide Thin Films by Reactive Co-Sputtering (Postprint)

Science.gov (United States)

2016-03-30

30 Mar 2016. This document contains color . Journal article published in Optical Interference Coatings, 19 Jun 2016. © 2016 Optical Society of...Ahn, Mi-So Lee, Moon-Ho Ham , Woong Lee, Jae-Min Myoung, “Effects of oxygen concentration on the properties of Al-doped ZnO transparent conductive

Facile Preparation of Carbon-Nanotube-based 3-Dimensional Transparent Conducting Networks for Flexible Noncontact Sensing Device

KAUST Repository

Tai, Yanlong

2016-04-12

Here, we report the controllable fabrication of transparent conductive films (TCFs) for moisture-sensing applications based on heating-rate-triggered, 3-dimensional porous conducting networks of single-walled carbon nanotube (SWCNT)/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-polystyrene sulfonate (PEDOT:PSS). How baking conditions influence the self-assembled microstructure of the TCFs is discussed. The sensor presents high-performance properties, including a reasonable sheet resistance (2.1 kohm/sq), a high visible-range transmittance (> 69 %, PET = 90 %), and good stability when subjected to cyclic loading (> 1000 cycles, better than indium tin oxide film) during processing. Moreover, the benefits of these kinds of TCFs were verified through a fully transparent, highly sensitive, rapid response, noncontact moisture-sensing device (5×5 sensing pixels).

Transparent conductive oxide films embedded with plasmonic nanostructure for light-emitting diode applications.

Science.gov (United States)

Chuang, Shih-Hao; Tsung, Cheng-Sheng; Chen, Ching-Ho; Ou, Sin-Liang; Horng, Ray-Hua; Lin, Cheng-Yi; Wuu, Dong-Sing

2015-02-04

In this study, a spin coating process in which the grating structure comprises an Ag nanoparticle layer coated on a p-GaN top layer of InGaN/GaN light-emitting diode (LED) was developed. Various sizes of plasmonic nanoparticles embedded in a transparent conductive layer were clearly observed after the deposition of indium tin oxide (ITO). The plasmonic nanostructure enhanced the light extraction efficiency of blue LED. Output power was 1.8 times the magnitude of that of conventional LEDs operating at 350 mA, but retained nearly the same current-voltage characteristic. Unlike in previous research on surface-plasmon-enhanced LEDs, the metallic nanoparticles were consistently deposited over the surface area. However, according to microstructural observation, ITO layer mixed with Ag-based nanoparticles was distributed at a distance of approximately 150 nm from the interface of ITO/p-GaN. Device performance can be improved substantially by using the three-dimensional distribution of Ag-based nanoparticles in the transparent conductive layer, which scatters the propagating light randomly and is coupled between the localized surface plasmon and incident light internally trapped in the LED structure through total internal reflection.

Three-dimensionally embedded indium tin oxide (ITO) films in photosensitive glass: a transparent and conductive platform for microdevices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Beke, S.; Sugioka, K.; Midorikawa, K.; Koroesi, L.; Dekany, I.

2011-01-01

A new method for embedding transparent and conductive two- and three-dimensional microstructures in glass is presented. We show that the internal surface of hollow structures fabricated by femtosecond-laser direct writing inside the photosensitive glass can be coated by indium tin oxide (Sn-doped In 2 O 3 , ITO) using a sol-gel process. The idea of combining two transparent materials with different electrical properties, i.e., insulating and conductive, is very promising and hence it opens new prospects in manufacturing cutting edge microdevices, such as lab-on-a-chips (LOCs) and microelectromechanical systems (MEMS). (orig.)

A novel technique for increase the figure of merit of indium-tin oxide transparent conducting coatings

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Keshmiri, S.H.; Roknabadi, M.R.

1999-01-01

Indium-Tin Oxide (ITO) films have been used as transparent electrodes in many optoelectronic devices. Although the free electron concentration in these films can be rather high, but due to low drift mobilities, the electrical conductivity of ITO films are much lower than that of metals. This is mainly due to high concentration of trapping centers created by structural defects in an ITO film. In this article, a simple technique is explained for post-deposition hydrogenation of ITO films. It was found that exposure of ITO films to atomic-hydrogen plasma produced a significant increases in the electrical conductivity of the films. At the optimum condition, an increase of about 330% in the electrical conductivity of an ITO film was observed. The hydrogenation process did not affect optical transparency of he samples adversely. But some slight improvements (in visible wavelengths) were observed. SEM studies indicated that the microstructure of the films was not noticeably changed by the hydrogenation process. (author)

Cu mesh for flexible transparent conductive electrodes.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Won-Kyung; Lee, Seunghun; Hee Lee, Duck; Hee Park, In; Seong Bae, Jong; Woo Lee, Tae; Kim, Ji-Young; Hun Park, Ji; Chan Cho, Yong; Ryong Cho, Chae; Jeong, Se-Young

2015-06-03

Copper electrodes with a micromesh/nanomesh structure were fabricated on a polyimide substrate using UV lithography and wet etching to produce flexible transparent conducting electrodes (TCEs). Well-defined mesh electrodes were realized through the use of high-quality Cu thin films. The films were fabricated using radio-frequency (RF) sputtering with a single-crystal Cu target--a simple but innovative approach that overcame the low oxidation resistance of ordinary Cu. Hybrid Cu mesh electrodes were fabricated by adding a capping layer of either ZnO or Al-doped ZnO. The sheet resistance and the transmittance of the electrode with an Al-doped ZnO capping layer were 6.197 ohm/sq and 90.657%, respectively, and the figure of merit was 60.502 × 10(-3)/ohm, which remained relatively unchanged after thermal annealing at 200 °C and 1,000 cycles of bending. This fabrication technique enables the mass production of large-area flexible TCEs, and the stability and high performance of Cu mesh hybrid electrodes in harsh environments suggests they have strong potential for application in smart displays and solar cells.

Enhanced electrical conductivity in Xe ion irradiated CNT based transparent conducting electrode on PET substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Surbhi; Sharma, Vikas; Singh, Satyavir; Garg, Priyanka; Asokan, K.; Sachdev, Kanupriya

2018-02-01

An investigation of MWCNT-based hybrid electrode films with improved electrical conductivity after Xe ion irradiation is reported. A multilayer hybrid structure of Ag-MWCNT layer embedded in between two ZnO layers was fabricated and evaluated, pre and post 100 keV Xe ion irradiation, for their performance as Transparent Conducting Electrode in terms of their optical and electrical properties. X-ray diffraction pattern exhibits highly c-axis oriented ZnO films with a small variation in lattice parameters with an increase in ion fluence. There is no significant change in the surface roughness of these films. Raman spectra were used to confirm the presence of CNT. The pristine multilayer films exhibit an average transmittance of ˜70% in the entire visible region and the transmittance increases with Xe ion fluence. A significant enhancement in electrical conductivity post-Xe ion irradiation viz from 1.14 × 10-7 Ω-1 cm-1 (pristine) to 7.04 × 103 Ω-1 cm-1 is seen which is due to the high connectivity in the top layer with Ag-CNT hybrid layer facilitating the smooth transfer of electrons.

Digital grayscale printing for patterned transparent conducting Ag electrodes and their applications in flexible electronics

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Gupta, Ritu; Hösel, Markus; Jensen, Jacob

2014-01-01

Grayscale (halftone) laser printing is developed as a low-cost and solution processable fabrication method for ITO-free, semi-transparent and conducting Ag electrodes extendable over large area on a flexible substrate. The transmittance and sheet resistance is easily tunable by varying the graysc...

Preparation and characterization of conductive and transparent ruthenium dioxide sol-gel films.

Science.gov (United States)

Allhusen, John S; Conboy, John C

2013-11-27

RuO2 conductive thin films were synthesized using the sol-gel method and deposited onto transparent insulating substrates. The optical transmission, film thickness, surface morphology and composition, resistivity, and spectroelectrochemical performance have been characterized. The optical transmission values of these films ranged from 70 to 89% in the visible region and from 56 to 88% in the infrared region. Resistivity values of the RuO2 sol-gel films varied from 1.02 × 10(-3) to 1.13 Ω cm and are highly dependent on the initial solution concentration of RuO2 in the sol-gel. The RuO2 sol-gel films were used as electrodes for the electrochemical oxidation and reduction of ferrocenemethanol. The electrochemical behavior of our novel RuO2 sol-gel films was compared to that of a standard platinum disk electrode and showed no appreciable differences in the half-wave potential (E1/2). The mechanical and chemical stability of the coatings was tested by physical abrasion and exposure to highly acidic, oxidizing Piranha solution. Repeated exposure to these extreme conditions did not result in any appreciable decline in electrochemical performance. Finally, the use of the novel RuO2 sol-gel conductive and transparent films was demonstrated in a spectroelectrochemistry experiment in which the oxidation and reduction of ferrocenemethanol was monitored via UV-vis spectroscopy as the applied potential was cycled.

Large scale, highly conductive and patterned transparent films of silver nanowires on arbitrary substrates and their application in touch screens

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Madaria, Anuj R; Kumar, Akshay; Zhou Chongwu

2011-01-01

The application of silver nanowire films as transparent conductive electrodes has shown promising results recently. In this paper, we demonstrate the application of a simple spray coating technique to obtain large scale, highly uniform and conductive silver nanowire films on arbitrary substrates. We also integrated a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-assisted contact transfer technique with spray coating, which allowed us to obtain large scale high quality patterned films of silver nanowires. The transparency and conductivity of the films was controlled by the volume of the dispersion used in spraying and the substrate area. We note that the optoelectrical property, σ DC /σ Op , for various films fabricated was in the range 75-350, which is extremely high for transparent thin film compared to other candidate alternatives to doped metal oxide film. Using this method, we obtain silver nanowire films on a flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate with a transparency of 85% and sheet resistance of 33 Ω/sq, which is comparable to that of tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) on flexible substrates. In-depth analysis of the film shows a high performance using another commonly used figure-of-merit, Φ TE . Also, Ag nanowire film/PET shows good mechanical flexibility and the application of such a conductive silver nanowire film as an electrode in a touch panel has been demonstrated.

Large scale, highly conductive and patterned transparent films of silver nanowires on arbitrary substrates and their application in touch screens.

Science.gov (United States)

Madaria, Anuj R; Kumar, Akshay; Zhou, Chongwu

2011-06-17

The application of silver nanowire films as transparent conductive electrodes has shown promising results recently. In this paper, we demonstrate the application of a simple spray coating technique to obtain large scale, highly uniform and conductive silver nanowire films on arbitrary substrates. We also integrated a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS)-assisted contact transfer technique with spray coating, which allowed us to obtain large scale high quality patterned films of silver nanowires. The transparency and conductivity of the films was controlled by the volume of the dispersion used in spraying and the substrate area. We note that the optoelectrical property, σ(DC)/σ(Op), for various films fabricated was in the range 75-350, which is extremely high for transparent thin film compared to other candidate alternatives to doped metal oxide film. Using this method, we obtain silver nanowire films on a flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate with a transparency of 85% and sheet resistance of 33 Ω/sq, which is comparable to that of tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) on flexible substrates. In-depth analysis of the film shows a high performance using another commonly used figure-of-merit, Φ(TE). Also, Ag nanowire film/PET shows good mechanical flexibility and the application of such a conductive silver nanowire film as an electrode in a touch panel has been demonstrated.

Patterning of nanoparticulate transparent conductive ITO films using UV light irradiation and UV laser beam writing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Solieman, A.; Moharram, A.H.; Aegerter, M.A.

2010-01-01

Indium tin oxide (ITO) thin film is one of the most widely used as transparent conductive electrodes in all forms of flat panel display (FPD) and microelectronic devices. Suspension of already crystalline conductive ITO nanoparticles fully dispersed in alcohol was spun, after modifying with coupling agent, on glass substrates. The low cost, simple and versatile traditional photolithography process without complication of the photoresist layer was used for patterning ITO films. Using of UV light irradiation through mask and direct UV laser beam writing resulted in an accurate linear, sharp edge and very smooth patterns. Irradiated ITO film showed a high transparency (∼85%) in the visible region. The electrical sheet resistance decrease with increasing time of exposure to UV light and UV laser. Only 5 min UV light irradiation is enough to decrease the electrical sheet resistance down to 5 kΩ□.

Highly Conductive PEDOT:PSS Films with 1,3-Dimethyl-2-Imidazolidinone as Transparent Electrodes for Organic Light-Emitting Diodes.

Science.gov (United States)

Kim, Jin Hee; Joo, Chul Woong; Lee, Jonghee; Seo, Yoon Kyung; Han, Joo Won; Oh, Ji Yoon; Kim, Jong Su; Yu, Seunggun; Lee, Jae Hyun; Lee, Jeong-Ik; Yun, Changhun; Choi, Bum Ho; Kim, Yong Hyun

2016-09-01

Highly conductive poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) ( PSS) films as transparent electrodes for organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) are doped with a new solvent 1,3-dimethyl-2-imidazolidinone (DMI) and are optimized using solvent post-treatment. The DMI doped PSS films show significantly enhanced conductivities up to 812.1 S cm(-1) . The sheet resistance of the PSS films doped with DMI is further reduced by various solvent post-treatment. The effect of solvent post-treatment on DMI doped PSS films is investigated and is shown to reduce insulating PSS in the conductive films. The solvent posttreated PSS films are successfully employed as transparent electrodes in white OLEDs. It is shown that the efficiency of OLEDs with the optimized DMI doped PSS films is higher than that of reference OLEDs doped with a conventional solvent (ethylene glycol). The results present that the optimized PSS films with the new solvent of DMI can be a promising transparent electrode for low-cost, efficient ITO-free white OLEDs. © 2016 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Improvement of corrosion resistance of transparent conductive multilayer coating consisting of silver layers and transparent metal oxide layers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koike, Katsuhiko; Yamazaki, Fumiharu; Okamura, Tomoyuki; Fukuda, Shin

2007-01-01

An optical filter for plasma display panel (PDP) requires an electromagnetic shield with very high ability. The authors investigated a transparent conductive multilayer coating consisting of silver (Ag) layers and transparent metal oxide layers. The durability of the multilayer sputter coating, including the silver layer, is very sensitive to the surrounding atmosphere. For example, after an exposure test they found discolored points on the multilayer sputter coatings, possibly caused by migration of silver atoms in the silver layers. In their investigation, they modified the top surface of the multilayer sputter coatings with transition metals to improve the corrosion resistance of the multilayer coating. Specifically, they deposited transition metals 0.5-2 nm thick on the top surface of the multilayer coatings by sputtering. They chose indium tin oxide (ITO) as the transparent metal oxide. They applied the multilayer sputter coatings of seven layers to a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) film substrate. A cross-sectional structure of the film with the multilayer coatings is PET film/ITO/Ag/ITO/Ag/ITO/Ag/ITO. They evaluated the corrosion resistance of the films by a salt-water immersion test. In the test, they immersed the film with multilayer coatings into salt water, and then evaluated the appearance, transmittance, and electrical resistance of the multilayer coatings. They investigated several transition metals as the modifying material, and found that titanium and tantalum drastically improved the resistance of the multilayer coatings to the salt-water exposure without a significant decline in transmittance. They also investigated the relation between elapsed time after deposition of the modifying materials and resistance to the salt water. Furthermore, they investigated the effects of a heat treatment and an oxide plasma treatment on resistance to the salt water

Urea-assisted low temperature green synthesis of graphene nanosheets for transparent conducting film

Science.gov (United States)

Chamoli, Pankaj; Das, Malay K.; Kar, Kamal K.

2018-02-01

Present work demonstrates the fabrication of graphene nanosheet (GN) based transparent conducting film (TCF) using spray coating. Green synthesis of GN is carried out by reduction of graphene oxide (GO) using urea as green reducing agent. The reductive ability of urea with varied concentration is studied for GO at low temperature (i.e., 90 °C). As synthesized graphene nanosheets (GNs) are characterized by Raman spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV-visible spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), atomic force microscope (AFM), and X-ray Photon spectroscopy (XPS). Raman analysis confirms that the maximum reduction of oxygen species is noticed using 30 mg/ml urea concentration at 90 °C from GO, and found Raman D to G band ratio (ID/IG) of ∼1.30. XPS analysis validates the Raman signature of removal of oxygen functional groups from GO, and obtained C/O ratio of ∼5.28. Further, transparent conducting films (TCFs) are fabricated using synthesized GNs. Thermal graphitization is carried out to enhance the optical and electrical properties of TCFs. TCF shows best performance when it is annealed at 900 °C for 1 h in vacuum, and obtained sheet resistance is ∼1.89 kΩ/□ with transmittance of ∼62.53%.

Transparent conductive electrodes of mixed TiO2−x–indium tin oxide for organic photovoltaics

KAUST Repository

Lee, Kyu-Sung; Lim, Jong-Wook; Kim, Han-Ki; Alford, T. L.; Jabbour, Ghassan E.

2012-01-01

A transparent conductive electrode of mixed titanium dioxide (TiO2−x)–indium tin oxide (ITO) with an overall reduction in the use of indium metal is demonstrated. When used in organic photovoltaicdevices based on bulk heterojunction photoactive

Oxygen effect of transparent conducting amorphous Indium Zinc Tin Oxide films on Polyimide substrate for flexible electrode

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ko, Yoon Duk; Lee, Chang Hun; Moon, Doo Kyung; Kim, Young Sung

2013-01-01

This paper discusses the effect of oxygen on the transparent conducting properties and mechanical durability of the amorphous indium zinc tin oxide (IZTO) films. IZTO films deposited on flexible clear polyimide (PI) substrate using pulsed direct current (DC) magnetron sputtering at room temperature under various oxygen partial pressures. All IZTO films deposited at room temperature exhibit an amorphous structure. The electrical and optical properties of the IZTO films were sensitively influenced by oxygen partial pressures. At optimized deposition condition of 3.0% oxygen partial pressure, the IZTO film shows the lowest resistivity of 6.4 × 10 −4 Ωcm, high transmittance of over 80% in the visible range, and figure of merit value of 3.6 × 10 −3 Ω −1 without any heat controls. In addition, high work function and good mechanical flexibility of amorphous IZTO films are beneficial to flexible applications. It is proven that the proper oxygen partial pressure is important parameter to enhance the transparent conducting properties of IZTO films on PI substrate deposited at room temperature. - Highlights: • Indium zinc tin oxide (IZTO) films were deposited on polyimide at room temperature. • Transparent conducting properties of IZTO were influenced with oxygen partial pressure. • The smooth surface and high work function of IZTO were beneficial to anode layer. • The mechanical reliability of IZTO shows better performance to indium tin oxide film

Preparation of p-type transparent conducting tin-antimony oxide thin films by DC reactive magnetron sputtering

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ji, Zhenguo [College of Electronic Information, Hangzhou Dianzi University, Hangzhou (China); State Key Laboratory for Silicon Materials, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou (China); Xi, Junhua; Huo, Lijuan; Zhao, Yi [State Key Laboratory for Silicon Materials, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou (China)

2008-07-01

P-type transparent conducting tin-antimony oxide (TAO) films were successfully prepared by DC reactive magnetron sputtering followed by post annealing in the air. Structural, optical and electrical properties of the TAO films were investigated. X-ray diffraction studies showed that the films are polycrystalline with orthorhombic structure of Sb{sub 2}O{sub 4}. UV-Visible absorption and transmittance spectra showed that the optical band-gap of the TAO films is about 3.90 eV, and the overall transmittance is higher than 85% in the visible region. Hall effect measurement indicated that the Sn/Sb ratio is a critical parameter to get p-type conducting TAO films. It was found that 0.19transparent conducting films. (copyright 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Slightly Conductive Transparent Films for Space Applications: Manufacturability and Durability

Science.gov (United States)

Uppala, N.; Griffin, J.; Vemulapalli, J.; Hambourger, P. D.

2001-01-01

Highly transparent, slightly conductive films of co-deposited indium tin oxide (ITO) and MgF, have possible applications for environmental protection of exterior surfaces of spacecraft. Reliable preparation of films with the desired sheet resistivity (approximately 10(exp 8) ohms/square) is difficult because the electrical properties of ITO-Mg F, are highly dependent on film composition. We have investigated the use of plasma emission monitoring to improve the reproducibility of films prepared by RF magnetron sputtering. While considerable improve ment was observed, it appears that some in-situ electrical or optica l characterization will be needed for reliable production coating wit h ITO-MgF,. We have also done further evaluation of a possibly undesi rable photoconductive effect previously observed in these films.

Transparent Conducting Film Fabricated by Metal Mesh Method with Ag and Cu@Ag Mixture Nanoparticle Pastes

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hyun Min Nam

2017-05-01

Full Text Available Transparent conducting electrode film is highly desirable for application in touch screen panels (TSPs, flexible and wearable displays, sensors, and actuators. A sputtered film of indium tin oxide (ITO shows high transmittance (90% at low sheet resistance (50 Ω/cm2. However, ITO films lack mechanical flexibility, especially under bending stress, and have limitation in application to large-area TSPs (over 15 inches due to the trade-off in high transmittance and low sheet resistance properties. One promising solution is to use metal mesh-type transparent conducting film, especially for touch panel application. In this work, we investigated such inter-related issues as UV imprinting process to make a trench layer pattern, the synthesis of core-shell-type Ag and Cu@Ag composite nanoparticles and their paste formulation, the filling of Ag and Cu@Ag mixture nanoparticle paste to the trench layer, and touch panel fabrication processes.

Electrical and optical performance of transparent conducting oxide films deposited by electrostatic spray assisted vapour deposition.

Science.gov (United States)

Hou, Xianghui; Choy, Kwang-Leong; Liu, Jun-Peng

2011-09-01

Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) films have the remarkable combination of high electrical conductivity and optical transparency. There is always a strong motivation to produce TCO films with good performance at low cost. Electrostatic Spray Assisted Vapor Deposition (ESAVD), as a variant of chemical vapour deposition (CVD), is a non-vacuum and low-cost deposition method. Several types of TCO films have been deposited using ESAVD process, including indium tin oxide (ITO), antimony-doped tin oxide (ATO), and fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO). This paper reports the electrical and optical properties of TCO films produced by ESAVD methods, as well as the effects of post treatment by plasma hydrogenation on these TCO films. The possible mechanisms involved during plasma hydrogenation of TCO films are also discussed. Reduction and etching effect during plasma hydrogenation are the most important factors which determine the optical and electrical performance of TCO films.

Nanopatterned Metallic Films for Use As Transparent Conductive Electrodes in Optoelectronic Devices

KAUST Repository

Catrysse, Peter B.

2010-08-11

We investigate the use of nanopatterned metallic films as transparent conductive electrodes in optoelectronic devices. We find that the physics of nanopatterned electrodes, which are often optically thin metallic films, differs from that of optically thick metallic films. We analyze the optical properties when performing a geometrical transformation that maintains the electrical properties. For one-dimensional patterns of metallic wires, the analysis favors tall and narrow wires. Our design principles remain valid for oblique incidence and readily carry over to two-dimensional patterns. © 2010 American Chemical Society.

Treatment of transparent conductive oxides by laser processes for the development of Silicon photovoltaic cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Canteli Perez-Caballero, D.

2015-01-01

Transparent conductive oxides (TCOs) are heavily doped oxides with high transparency in the visible range of the spectrum and a very low sheet resistance, making them very attractive for applications in optoelectronic devices. TCOs are widely found in many different areas such as low emissivity windows, electric contacts in computers, televisions or portable devices, and, specially, in the photovoltaic (PV) industry. PV industry is mainly based on mono- and multicrystalline silicon, where TCOs are used as anti-reflective coatings, but the search for cheaper, alternative technologies has led to the development of thin film PV technologies, where TCOs are used as transparent contacts. With the maturation of the thin film PV industry, laser sources have become an essential tool, allowing the improvement of some industrial processes and the development of new ones. Because of the interest on a deeper understanding of the interaction processes between laser light and TCOs, the laser ablation of three of the most important TCOs has been studied in depth in the present work. (Author)

THz characterization and demonstration of visible-transparent/terahertz-functional electromagnetic structures in ultra-conductive La-doped BaSnO3 Films.

Science.gov (United States)

Arezoomandan, Sara; Prakash, Abhinav; Chanana, Ashish; Yue, Jin; Mao, Jieying; Blair, Steve; Nahata, Ajay; Jalan, Bharat; Sensale-Rodriguez, Berardi

2018-02-23

We report on terahertz characterization of La-doped BaSnO 3 (BSO) thin-films. BSO is a transparent complex oxide material, which has attracted substantial interest due to its large electrical conductivity and wide bandgap. The complex refractive index of these films is extracted in the 0.3 to 1.5 THz frequency range, which shows a metal-like response across this broad frequency window. The large optical conductivity found in these films at terahertz wavelengths makes this material an interesting platform for developing electromagnetic structures having a strong response at terahertz wavelengths, i.e. terahertz-functional, while being transparent at visible and near-IR wavelengths. As an example of such application, we demonstrate a visible-transparent terahertz polarizer.

An Indium-Free Anode for Large-Area Flexible OLEDs: Defect-Free Transparent Conductive Zinc Tin Oxide

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Morales-Masis, M.; Dauzou, F.; Jeangros, Q.; Dabirian, A.; Lifka, H.; Gierth, R.; Ruske, M.; Moet, D.; Hessler-Wyser, A.; Ballif, C.

2016-01-01

Flexible large-area organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) require highly conductive and transparent anodes for efficient and uniform light emission. Tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) is the standard anode in industry. However, due to the scarcity of indium, alternative anodes that eliminate its use are

Transparent and conductive polyethylene oxide film by the introduction of individualized single-walled carbon nanotubes.

Science.gov (United States)

Jung, Yong Chae; Muramatsu, Hiroyuki; Park, Ki Chul; Shimamoto, Daisuke; Kim, Jin Hee; Hayashi, Takuya; Song, Sung Moo; Kim, Yoong Ahm; Endo, Morinobu; Dresselhaus, Mildred S

2009-12-16

It is demonstrated that an optically transparent and electrically conductive polyethylene oxide (PEO) film is fabricated by the introduction of individualized single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). The incorporated SWNTs in the PEO film sustain their intrinsic electronic and optical properties and, in addition, the intrinsic properties of the polymer matrix are retained. The individualized SWNTs with smaller diameter provide high transmittance as well as good electrical conductivity in PEO films. Copyright © 2009 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Degradation studies of transparent conductive electrodes on electroactive poly(vinylidene fluoride for uric acid measurements

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Vanessa F Cardoso, Pedro Martins, Gabriela Botelho, Luis Rebouta, Senentxu Lanceros-Méndez and Graca Minas

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Biochemical analysis of physiological fluids using, for example, lab-on-a-chip devices requires accurate mixing of two or more fluids. This mixing can be assisted by acoustic microagitation using a piezoelectric material, such as the β-phase of poly(vinylidene fluoride (β-PVDF. If the analysis is performed using optical absorption spectroscopy and β-PVDF is located in the optical path, the material and its conductive electrodes must be transparent. Moreover, if, to improve the transmission of the ultrasonic waves to the fluids, the piezoelectric transducer is placed inside the fluidic structures, its degradation must be assessed. In this paper, we report on the degradation properties of transparent conductive oxides, namely, indium tin oxide (ITO and aluminum-doped zinc oxide, when they are used as electrodes for providing acoustic microagitation. The latter promotes mixing of chemicals involved in the measurement of uric acid concentration in physiological fluids. The results are compared with those for aluminum electrodes. We find that β-PVDF samples with ITO electrodes do not degrade either with or without acoustic microagitation.

Degradation studies of transparent conductive electrodes on electroactive poly(vinylidene fluoride) for uric acid measurements

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cardoso, Vanessa F; Minas, Graca; Martins, Pedro; Rebouta, Luis; Lanceros-Mendez, Senentxu; Botelho, Gabriela

2010-01-01

Biochemical analysis of physiological fluids using, for example, lab-on-a-chip devices requires accurate mixing of two or more fluids. This mixing can be assisted by acoustic microagitation using a piezoelectric material, such as the β-phase of poly(vinylidene fluoride) (β-PVDF). If the analysis is performed using optical absorption spectroscopy and β-PVDF is located in the optical path, the material and its conductive electrodes must be transparent. Moreover, if, to improve the transmission of the ultrasonic waves to the fluids, the piezoelectric transducer is placed inside the fluidic structures, its degradation must be assessed. In this paper, we report on the degradation properties of transparent conductive oxides, namely, indium tin oxide (ITO) and aluminum-doped zinc oxide, when they are used as electrodes for providing acoustic microagitation. The latter promotes mixing of chemicals involved in the measurement of uric acid concentration in physiological fluids. The results are compared with those for aluminum electrodes. We find that β-PVDF samples with ITO electrodes do not degrade either with or without acoustic microagitation.

Effect of oxygen intercalation on properties of sputtered CuYO2 for ...

Indian Academy of Sciences (India)

WINTEC

which has 30% transparency in the visible region. The. CuAlO2 thin films having a delafossite structure has shown a transparency of 80% in the visible and infrared ... The value of x i.e. the percentage of excess ... 1050°C for 70 h producing CuY0⋅98Ca0⋅02O2. ... films leads to poor crystallinity on annealing in presence.

An easy, low-cost method to transfer large-scale graphene onto polyethylene terephthalate as a transparent conductive flexible substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Chih-Sheng; Hsieh, Chien-Kuo

2014-01-01

In this study, we develop a low-cost method for transferring a large-scale graphene film onto a flexible transparent substrate. An easily accessible method for home-made chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and a commercial photograph laminator were utilized to fabricate the low-cost graphene-based transparent conductive flexible substrate. The graphene was developed based on CVD growth on nickel foil using a carbon gas source, and the graphene thin film was easily transferred onto the laminating film via a heated photograph laminator. Field emission scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy were utilized to examine the morphological characteristics of the graphene surface. Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy were utilized to examine the microstructure of the graphene. The optical–electronic properties of the transferred graphene flexible thin film were measured by ultraviolet–visible spectrometry and a four-point probe. The advantage of this method is that large-scale graphene-based thin films can be easily obtained. We provide an economical method for fabricating a graphene-based transparent conductive flexible substrate. - Highlight: • We synthesized the large-scale graphene by thermal CVD method. • A low-cost commercial photograph laminator was used to transfer graphene. • A large-scale transparent and flexible graphene substrate was obtained easily

An easy, low-cost method to transfer large-scale graphene onto polyethylene terephthalate as a transparent conductive flexible substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Chen, Chih-Sheng; Hsieh, Chien-Kuo, E-mail: jack_hsieh@mail.mcut.edu.tw

2014-11-03

In this study, we develop a low-cost method for transferring a large-scale graphene film onto a flexible transparent substrate. An easily accessible method for home-made chemical vapor deposition (CVD) and a commercial photograph laminator were utilized to fabricate the low-cost graphene-based transparent conductive flexible substrate. The graphene was developed based on CVD growth on nickel foil using a carbon gas source, and the graphene thin film was easily transferred onto the laminating film via a heated photograph laminator. Field emission scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy were utilized to examine the morphological characteristics of the graphene surface. Raman spectroscopy and transmission electron microscopy were utilized to examine the microstructure of the graphene. The optical–electronic properties of the transferred graphene flexible thin film were measured by ultraviolet–visible spectrometry and a four-point probe. The advantage of this method is that large-scale graphene-based thin films can be easily obtained. We provide an economical method for fabricating a graphene-based transparent conductive flexible substrate. - Highlight: • We synthesized the large-scale graphene by thermal CVD method. • A low-cost commercial photograph laminator was used to transfer graphene. • A large-scale transparent and flexible graphene substrate was obtained easily.

Pulsed laser deposition of transparent conductive oxide thin films on flexible substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Socol, G.; Socol, M.; Stefan, N.; Axente, E.; Popescu-Pelin, G.; Craciun, D.; Duta, L.; Mihailescu, C.N.; Mihailescu, I.N.; Stanculescu, A.; Visan, D.; Sava, V.; Galca, A.C.; Luculescu, C.R.; Craciun, V.

2012-01-01

Highlights: ► TCO thin films were grown by PLD on PET substrate at low temperature. ► We found that the quality of TCO on PET substrate depends on the target–substrate distance. ► TCO with high transparency (>95%) and reduced electrical resistivity (∼5 × 10 −4 Ω cm) were obtained. ► Optimized TCO films deposited on PET were free of any cracks. - Abstract: The influence of target–substrate distance during pulsed laser deposition of indium zinc oxide (IZO), indium tin oxide (ITO) and aluminium-doped zinc oxide (AZO) thin films grown on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates was investigated. It was found that the properties of such flexible transparent conductive oxide (TCO)/PET electrodes critically depend on this parameter. The TCO films that were deposited at distances of 6 and 8 cm exhibited an optical transmittance higher than 90% in the visible range and electrical resistivities around 5 × 10 −4 Ω cm. In addition to these excellent electrical and optical characteristics the films grown at 8 cm distance were homogenous, smooth, adherent, and without cracks or any other extended defects, being suitable for opto-electronic device applications.

Indium-free Cu/fluorine doped ZnO composite transparent conductive electrodes with stretchable and flexible performance on poly(ethylene terephthalate) substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Han, Jun; Gong, Haibo; Yang, Xiaopeng; Qiu, Zhiwen; Zi, Min; Qiu, Xiaofeng; Wang, Hongqiang; Cao, Bingqiang

2015-03-01

Material-abundant ZnO and metal thin film have been proposed as potential alternatives for the most widely commercial indium tin oxide (ITO) transparent and conductive electrode. Yet the deterioration of optical transparency and conductivity for these materials makes them difficult to compete with ITO. In this work, a double-layer structured film-composed of FZO and Cu film is presented at room temperature, which combines the high transparency of FZO and high conductivity of Cu film. We first studied the effect of oxygen pressure on the transparency and conductivity of free-standing FZO layer deposited on poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) by PLD method. Also the structural, electrical, and optical properties of bilayers electrode dependence on the Cu layer thickness were optimized in detail. As the Cu layer thickness increases, the resistivity decreases. The lowest resistivity of 6.6 × 10-5 Ω cm with a carrier concentration of 1.11 × 1022 cm-3 and mobility of 8.52 cm2 V-1 s-1 was obtained at the optimum Cu (12 nm) layer thickness. We find that FZO layer have anti-reflection effect for Cu/FZO (250 nm) bilayer in the wavelength range of 650-1000 nm compared with single Cu layer. And we firstly study the stretchable performance for Cu film-based composite electrodes with stretching ratio changing from 0 to 5%. Furthermore, we study excellent mechanical flexibility and stability of composite electrodes by bending test.

Unoccupied electronic state of delafossite-type PdCoO2 single crystal probed using inverse photoemission spectroscopy

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Higuchi, Tohru; Tsukamoto, Takeyo; Hasegawa, Masashi; Tanaka, Masayuki; Takei, Humihiko; Shin, Shik

2004-01-01

The unoccupied electronic state of delafossite-type PdCoO 2 has been studied using inverse-photoemission spectroscopy (IPES). The Fermi edge and the unoccupied density-of-state (DOS) at the Fermi level (E F ) are not observed in the IPES spectrum measured at the incidence electron energy (E K ) of 100 eV, which corresponds to the Cooper minimum of Pd 4d. The finite DOS at E F is observed in the IPES spectra measured at the lower E K , which the ionization cross section of Pd 4d increases. These findings indicate that the Pd 4d electron is closely related to the low electrical resistivity of PdCoO 2 . (author)

Non-vacuum, single-step conductive transparent ZnO patterning by ultra-short pulsed laser annealing of solution-deposited nanoparticles

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Daeho; Pan, Heng; Kim, Eunpa; Grigoropoulos, Costas P. [University of California, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Berkeley, CA (United States); Ko, Seung Hwan [Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST), Department of Mechanical Engineering, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of); Park, Hee K. [AppliFlex LLC, Sunnyvale, CA (United States)

2012-04-15

A solution-processable, high-concentration transparent ZnO nanoparticle (NP) solution was successfully synthesized in a new process. A highly transparent ZnO thin film was fabricated by spin coating without vacuum deposition. Subsequent ultra-short-pulsed laser annealing at room temperature was performed to change the film properties without using a blanket high temperature heating process. Although the as-deposited NP thin film was not electrically conductive, laser annealing imparted a large conductivity increase and furthermore enabled selective annealing to write conductive patterns directly on the NP thin film without a photolithographic process. Conductivity enhancement could be obtained by altering the laser annealing parameters. Parametric studies including the sheet resistance and optical transmittance of the annealed ZnO NP thin film were conducted for various laser powers, scanning speeds and background gas conditions. The lowest resistivity from laser-annealed ZnO thin film was about 4.75 x 10{sup -2} {omega} cm, exhibiting a factor of 10{sup 5} higher conductivity than the previously reported furnace-annealed ZnO NP film and is even comparable to that of vacuum-deposited, impurity-doped ZnO films within a factor of 10. The process developed in this work was applied to the fabrication of a thin film transistor (TFT) device that showed enhanced performance compared with furnace-annealed devices. A ZnO TFT performance test revealed that by just changing the laser parameters, the solution-deposited ZnO thin film can also perform as a semiconductor, demonstrating that laser annealing offers tunability of ZnO thin film properties for both transparent conductors and semiconductors. (orig.)

Evaluating conducting network based transparent electrodes from geometrical considerations

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kumar, Ankush [Chemistry and Physics of Materials Unit, Jawaharlal Nehru Centre for Advanced Scientific Research, 560064 Bangalore (India); Kulkarni, G. U., E-mail: guk@cens.res.in [Centre for Nano and Soft Matter Sciences, 560013 Bangalore (India)

2016-01-07

Conducting nanowire networks have been developed as viable alternative to existing indium tin oxide based transparent electrode (TE). The nature of electrical conduction and process optimization for electrodes have gained much from the theoretical models based on percolation transport using Monte Carlo approach and applying Kirchhoff's law on individual junctions and loops. While most of the literature work pertaining to theoretical analysis is focussed on networks obtained from conducting rods (mostly considering only junction resistance), hardly any attention has been paid to those made using template based methods, wherein the structure of network is neither similar to network obtained from conducting rods nor similar to well periodic geometry. Here, we have attempted an analytical treatment based on geometrical arguments and applied image analysis on practical networks to gain deeper insight into conducting networked structure particularly in relation to sheet resistance and transmittance. Many literature examples reporting networks with straight or curvilinear wires with distributions in wire width and length have been analysed by treating the networks as two dimensional graphs and evaluating the sheet resistance based on wire density and wire width. The sheet resistance values from our analysis compare well with the experimental values. Our analysis on various examples has revealed that low sheet resistance is achieved with high wire density and compactness with straight rather than curvilinear wires and with narrower wire width distribution. Similarly, higher transmittance for given sheet resistance is possible with narrower wire width but of higher thickness, minimal curvilinearity, and maximum connectivity. For the purpose of evaluating active fraction of the network, the algorithm was made to distinguish and quantify current carrying backbone regions as against regions containing only dangling or isolated wires. The treatment can be helpful in

Evaluating conducting network based transparent electrodes from geometrical considerations

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumar, Ankush; Kulkarni, G. U.

2016-01-01

Conducting nanowire networks have been developed as viable alternative to existing indium tin oxide based transparent electrode (TE). The nature of electrical conduction and process optimization for electrodes have gained much from the theoretical models based on percolation transport using Monte Carlo approach and applying Kirchhoff's law on individual junctions and loops. While most of the literature work pertaining to theoretical analysis is focussed on networks obtained from conducting rods (mostly considering only junction resistance), hardly any attention has been paid to those made using template based methods, wherein the structure of network is neither similar to network obtained from conducting rods nor similar to well periodic geometry. Here, we have attempted an analytical treatment based on geometrical arguments and applied image analysis on practical networks to gain deeper insight into conducting networked structure particularly in relation to sheet resistance and transmittance. Many literature examples reporting networks with straight or curvilinear wires with distributions in wire width and length have been analysed by treating the networks as two dimensional graphs and evaluating the sheet resistance based on wire density and wire width. The sheet resistance values from our analysis compare well with the experimental values. Our analysis on various examples has revealed that low sheet resistance is achieved with high wire density and compactness with straight rather than curvilinear wires and with narrower wire width distribution. Similarly, higher transmittance for given sheet resistance is possible with narrower wire width but of higher thickness, minimal curvilinearity, and maximum connectivity. For the purpose of evaluating active fraction of the network, the algorithm was made to distinguish and quantify current carrying backbone regions as against regions containing only dangling or isolated wires. The treatment can be helpful in

Magnetron sputtered transparent conductive zinc-oxide stabilized amorphous indium oxide thin films on polyethylene terephthalate substrates at ambient temperature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yan, Y.; Zhang, X.-F.; Ding, Y.-T.

2013-01-01

Amorphous transparent conducting zinc-oxide stabilized indium oxide thin films, named amorphous indium zinc oxide (a-IZO), were deposited by direct current magnetron sputtering at ambient temperature on flexible polyethylene terephthalate substrates. It has been demonstrated that the electrical resistivity could attain as low as ∼ 5 × 10 −4 Ω cm, which was noticeably lower than amorphous indium tin oxide films prepared at the same condition, while the visible transmittance exceeded 84% with the refractive index of 1.85–2.00. In our experiments, introduction of oxygen gas appeared to be beneficial to the improvement of the transparency and electrical conductivity. Both free carrier absorption and indirect transition were observed and Burstein–Moss effect proved a-IZO to be a degenerated amorphous semiconductor. However, the linear relation between the optical band gap and the band tail width which usually observed in covalent amorphous semiconductor such as a-Si:H was not conserved. Besides, porosity could greatly determine the resistivity and optical constants for the thickness variation at this deposition condition. Furthermore, a broad photoluminescence peak around 510 nm was identified when more than 1.5 sccm oxygen was introduced. - Highlights: ► Highly conducting amorphous zinc-oxide stabilized indium oxide thin films were prepared. ► The films were fabricated on polyethylene terephthalate at ambient temperature. ► Introduction of oxygen can improve the transparency and electrical conductivity. ► The linear relation between optical band gap and band tail width was not conserved

Far-IR transparency and dynamic infrared signature control with novel conducting polymer systems

Science.gov (United States)

Chandrasekhar, Prasanna; Dooley, T. J.

1995-09-01

Materials which possess transparency, coupled with active controllability of this transparency in the infrared (IR), are today an increasingly important requirement, for varied applications. These applications include windows for IR sensors, IR-region flat panel displays used in camouflage as well as in communication and sight through night-vision goggles, coatings with dynamically controllable IR-emissivity, and thermal conservation coatings. Among stringent requirements for these applications are large dynamic ranges (color contrast), 'multi-color' or broad-band characteristics, extended cyclability, long memory retention, matrix addressability, small area fabricability, low power consumption, and environmental stability. Among materials possessing the requirements for variation of IR signature, conducting polymers (CPs) appear to be the only materials with dynamic, actively controllable signature and acceptable dynamic range. Conventional CPs such as poly(alkyl thiophene), poly(pyrrole) or poly(aniline) show very limited dynamic range, especially in the far-IR, while also showing poor transparency. We have developed a number of novel CP systems ('system' implying the CP, the selected dopant, the synthesis method, and the electrolyte) with very wide dynamic range (up to 90% in both important IR regions, 3 - 5 (mu) and 8 - 12 (mu) ), high cyclability (to 105 cycles with less than 10% optical degradation), nearly indefinite optical memory retention, matrix addressability of multi-pixel displays, very wide operating temperature and excellent environmental stability, low charge capacity, and processability into areas from less than 1 mm2 to more than 100 cm2. The criteria used to design and arrive at these CP systems, together with representative IR signature data, are presented in this paper.

Electrical transport properties of spray deposited transparent conducting ortho-Zn2SnO4 thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Ramarajan, R.; Thangaraju, K.; Babu, R. Ramesh; Joseph, D. Paul

2018-04-01

Ortho Zinc Stannate (Zn2SnO4) exhibits excellent electrical and optical properties to serve as alternate transparent electrode in optoelectronic devices. Here we have optimized ortho-Zn2SnO4 thin film by spray pyrolysis method. Deposition was done onto a pre-heated glass substrate at a temperature of 400 °C. The XRD pattern indicated films to be polycrystalline with cubic structure. The surface of films had globular and twisted metal sheet like morphologies. Films were transparent in the visible region with band gap around 3.6 eV. Transport properties were studied by Hall measurements at 300 K. Activation energies were calculated from Arrhenius's plot from temperature dependent electrical measurements and the conduction mechanism is discussed.

Optical haze of randomly arranged silver nanowire transparent conductive films with wide range of nanowire diameters

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

M. Marus

2018-03-01

Full Text Available The effect of the diameter of randomly arranged silver nanowires on the optical haze of silver nanowire transparent conductive films was studied. Proposed simulation model behaved similarly with the experimental results, and was used to theoretically study the optical haze of silver nanowires with diameters in the broad range from 30 nm and above. Our results show that a thickening of silver nanowires from 30 to 100 nm results in the increase of the optical haze up to 8 times, while from 100 to 500 nm the optical haze increases only up to 1.38. Moreover, silver nanowires with diameter of 500 nm possess up to 5% lower optical haze and 5% higher transmittance than 100 nm thick silver nanowires for the same 10-100 Ohm/sq sheet resistance range. Further thickening of AgNWs can match the low haze of 30 nm thick AgNWs, but at higher transmittance. The results obtained from this work allow deeper analysis of the silver nanowire transparent conductive films from the perspective of the diameter of nanowires for various optoelectronic devices.

Surface microstructure evolution of highly transparent and conductive Al-doped ZnO thin films and its application in CIGS solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Cheng, Ke; Liu, Jingjing; Jin, Ranran; Liu, Jingling; Liu, Xinsheng; Lu, Zhangbo; Liu, Ya; Liu, Xiaolan; Du, Zuliang

2017-07-01

Aluminum-doped zinc oxide (AZO) has attained intensive attention as being a very good transparent conducting oxide for photovoltaic applications. In this work, AZO films have been deposited on glass substrate by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering. The influences of substrate temperatures on morphological, structural, optical and electrical properties of AZO films were systematically investigated. The results indicate that all AZO films have the hexagonal structure with c-axis preferred orientation. Morphological and electrical measurements have revealed that the substrate temperatures have strong influence on the microstructure, optical and electrical properties of AZO films. The AZO film is highly transparent from ultraviolet up to near infrared range with highest average transparency exceeding 83%. The minimum resistivity is as low as 6.1 × 10-4 Ω cm. The carrier concentration and mobility are as high as 3.357 × 1020 cm-3 and 30.48 cm2/Vs, respectively. Finally, the performances of the AZO film are evaluated by its practical application in Cu(In1-xGax)Se2 (CIGS) photovoltaic device as a transparent electrode. Benefited from its highly transparent and conductive feature, the most efficient device reveals an efficiency of 7.8% with a short-circuit current density of 28.99 mA/cm2, an open-circuit voltage of 430 mV, and a fill factor of 62.44 under standard conditions.

Amorphous semiconducting and conducting transparent metal oxide thin films and production thereof

Science.gov (United States)

Perkins, John; Van Hest, Marinus Franciscus Antonius Maria; Ginley, David; Taylor, Matthew; Neuman, George A.; Luten, Henry A.; Forgette, Jeffrey A.; Anderson, John S.

2010-07-13

Metal oxide thin films and production thereof are disclosed. An exemplary method of producing a metal oxide thin film may comprise introducing at least two metallic elements and oxygen into a process chamber to form a metal oxide. The method may also comprise depositing the metal oxide on a substrate in the process chamber. The method may also comprise simultaneously controlling a ratio of the at least two metallic elements and a stoichiometry of the oxygen during deposition. Exemplary amorphous metal oxide thin films produced according to the methods herein may exhibit highly transparent properties, highly conductive properties, and/or other opto-electronic properties.

Fibrous flexible solid-type dye-sensitized solar cells without transparent conducting oxide

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fan Xing; Chu Zengze; Chen Lin; Zhang Chao; Wang Fuzhi; Tang Yanwei; Sun Jianliang; Zou Dechun

2008-01-01

We have explored a type of all-solid fibrous flexible dye-sensitized solar cells without transparent conducting oxide based on a CuI electrolyte. The working electrode's substrate is a metal wire. Cu wire counterelectrode is twisted with the dye-sensitized and CuI-coated working electrode. The cell's apparent diameter is about 150 μm. The cell's current-voltage output depends little on the incident angle of light. A 4-cm-long fibrous cell's open-circuit voltage and short-circuit current generate 304 mV and 0.032 mA, respectively. The interfacial interaction between the two electrodes has a significant influence on the inner charge transfer of the cell

ZnO transparent conductive oxide for thin film silicon solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Söderström, T.; Dominé, D.; Feltrin, A.; Despeisse, M.; Meillaud, F.; Bugnon, G.; Boccard, M.; Cuony, P.; Haug, F.-J.; Faÿ, S.; Nicolay, S.; Ballif, C.

2010-03-01

There is general agreement that the future production of electric energy has to be renewable and sustainable in the long term. Photovoltaic (PV) is booming with more than 7GW produced in 2008 and will therefore play an important role in the future electricity supply mix. Currently, crystalline silicon (c-Si) dominates the market with a share of about 90%. Reducing the cost per watt peak and energy pay back time of PV was the major concern of the last decade and remains the main challenge today. For that, thin film silicon solar cells has a strong potential because it allies the strength of c-Si (i.e. durability, abundancy, non toxicity) together with reduced material usage, lower temperature processes and monolithic interconnection. One of the technological key points is the transparent conductive oxide (TCO) used for front contact, barrier layer or intermediate reflector. In this paper, we report on the versatility of ZnO grown by low pressure chemical vapor deposition (ZnO LP-CVD) and its application in thin film silicon solar cells. In particular, we focus on the transparency, the morphology of the textured surface and its effects on the light in-coupling for micromorph tandem cells in both the substrate (n-i-p) and superstrate (p-i-n) configurations. The stabilized efficiencies achieved in Neuchâtel are 11.2% and 9.8% for p-i-n (without ARC) and n-i-p (plastic substrate), respectively.

Nitrogen grain-boundary passivation of In-doped ZnO transparent conducting oxide

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, D.; Butt, M. Z.; Coughlan, C.; Caffrey, D.; Shvets, I. V.; Fleischer, K.

2018-04-01

We have investigated the properties and conduction limitations of spray pyrolysis grown, low-cost transparent conducting oxide ZnO thin films doped with indium. We analyze the optical, electrical, and crystallographic properties as functions of In content with a specific focus on postgrowth heat treatment of these thin films at 320 ∘C in an inert, nitrogen atmosphere, which improves the films electrical properties considerably. The effect was found to be dominated by nitrogen-induced grain-boundary passivation, identified by a combined study using i n situ resistance measurement upon annealing, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, photoluminescence, and x-ray diffraction studies. We also highlight the chemical mechanism of morphologic and crystallographic changes found in films with high indium content. By optimizing growth conditions according to these findings, ZnO:In with a resistivity as low as 2 ×10 -3Ω cm , high optical quality (T ≈90 % ), and sheet resistance of 32 Ω /□ has been obtained without any need for postgrowth treatments.

Structural, optical and electrical characterization of ITO, ITO/Ag and ITO/Ni transparent conductive electrodes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ali, Ahmad Hadi; Shuhaimi, Ahmad; Hassan, Zainuriah

2014-01-01

We report on the transparent conductive oxides (TCO) characteristics based on the indium tin oxides (ITO) and ITO/metal thin layer as an electrode for optoelectronics device applications. ITO, ITO/Ag and ITO/Ni were deposited on Si and glass substrate by thermal evaporator and radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering at room temperature. Post deposition annealing was performed on the samples in air at moderate temperature of 500 °C and 600 °C. The structural, optical and electrical properties of the ITO and ITO/metal were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV–Vis spectrophotometer, Hall effect measurement system and atomic force microscope (AFM). The XRD spectrum reveals significant polycrystalline peaks of ITO (2 2 2) and Ag (1 1 1) after post annealing process. The post annealing also improves the visible light transmittance and electrical resistivity of the samples. Figure of merit (FOM) of the ITO, ITO/Ag and ITO/Ni were determined as 5.5 × 10 −3 Ω −1 , 8.4 × 10 −3 Ω −1 and 3.0 × 10 −5 Ω −1 , respectively. The results show that the post annealed ITO with Ag intermediate layer improved the efficiency of the transparent conductive electrodes (TCE) as compared to the ITO and ITO/Ni.

A carbon nanotube-based transparent conductive substrate for flexible ZnO dye-sensitized solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Du, Juan; Bittner, Florian [Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry, Leibniz University Hannover, Callinstr. 3a, 30167 Hannover (Germany); Hecht, David S.; Ladous, Corinne [Unidym, 1244 Reamwood Avenue, Sunnyvale, CA (United States); Ellinger, Jan [Tesa SE, Quickbornstr. 24, 20253 Hamburg (Germany); Oekermann, Torsten, E-mail: torstensan@t-online.de [Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry, Leibniz University Hannover, Callinstr. 3a, 30167 Hannover (Germany); Wark, Michael, E-mail: michael.wark@techem.ruhr-uni-bochum.de [Institute of Physical Chemistry and Electrochemistry, Leibniz University Hannover, Callinstr. 3a, 30167 Hannover (Germany); Laboratory of Industrial Chemistry, Ruhr University Bochum, Universitaetsstr. 150, 44801 Bochum (Germany)

2013-03-01

A transparent carbon nanotube (CNT)-coated polyethylenterephthalat film was used as conducting substrate for the photoanode of a flexible ZnO-based dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC). The porous ZnO films were fabricated by an electrochemical deposition method at low temperature. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy revealed that the CNT/ZnO interface adds to the overall impedance of the cell, leading to a higher series resistance compared to DSSCs based on substrates employing a transparent conducting oxide. Nevertheless, an overall conversion efficiency of 2.5% was obtained with porous ZnO films electrodeposited on the CNT substrate for 60 min. Thicker films led to an increased loss by recombination, which could not be compensated by faster electron transport due to the decrease of the light intensity inside the ZnO film with increasing distance from the back contact. - Highlights: ► ZnO was electrochemically deposited on carbon nanotube (CNT) coated polymer. ► Highly porous ZnO was obtained at temperatures not exceeding 70 °C. ► The porous ZnO was tested as photoanode in dye-sensitized solar cells. ► Conversion efficiency of 2.5% was found on the high resistance CNT substrates. ► Barriers formed at the CNT–ZnO interface are determined by impedance spectroscopy.

Direct growth of transparent conducting Nb-doped anatase TiO2 polycrystalline films on glass

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yamada, Naoomi; Kasai, Junpei; Hitosugi, Taro; Hoang, Ngoc Lam Huong; Nakao, Shoichiro; Hirose, Yasushi; Shimada, Toshihiro; Hasegawa, Tetsuya

2009-01-01

This paper proposes a novel sputter-based method for the direct growth of transparent conducting Ti 1-x Nb x O 2 (TNO) polycrystalline films on glass, without the need for any postdeposition treatments, by the use of an initial seed-layer. Anatase TNO epitaxial films grown on LaAlO 3 (100) substrates under a reducing atmosphere exhibited a low resistivity (ρ) of (3-6)x10 -4 Ω cm. On glass, however, highly resistive rutile phase polycrystalline films (ρ∼100 Ω cm) formed preferentially under the same conditions. These results suggest that epitaxial stabilization of the oxygen-deficient anatase phase occurs on lattice-matched substrates. To produce a similar effect on a glass surface, we deposited a seed-layer of anatase TNO with excellent crystallinity under an increased oxygen atmosphere. As a result, anatase phase TNO polycrystalline films could be grown even under heavily reducing atmospheres. An optimized film exhibited ρ=1.1x10 -3 Ω cm and optical absorption lower than 10% in the visible region. This ρ value is more than one order of magnitude lower than values reported for directly deposited TNO polycrystalline films. This indicates that the seed-layer method has considerable potential for producing transparent conducting TNO polycrystalline films on glass.

A carbon nanotube-based transparent conductive substrate for flexible ZnO dye-sensitized solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Du, Juan; Bittner, Florian; Hecht, David S.; Ladous, Corinne; Ellinger, Jan; Oekermann, Torsten; Wark, Michael

2013-01-01

A transparent carbon nanotube (CNT)-coated polyethylenterephthalat film was used as conducting substrate for the photoanode of a flexible ZnO-based dye-sensitized solar cell (DSSC). The porous ZnO films were fabricated by an electrochemical deposition method at low temperature. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy revealed that the CNT/ZnO interface adds to the overall impedance of the cell, leading to a higher series resistance compared to DSSCs based on substrates employing a transparent conducting oxide. Nevertheless, an overall conversion efficiency of 2.5% was obtained with porous ZnO films electrodeposited on the CNT substrate for 60 min. Thicker films led to an increased loss by recombination, which could not be compensated by faster electron transport due to the decrease of the light intensity inside the ZnO film with increasing distance from the back contact. - Highlights: ► ZnO was electrochemically deposited on carbon nanotube (CNT) coated polymer. ► Highly porous ZnO was obtained at temperatures not exceeding 70 °C. ► The porous ZnO was tested as photoanode in dye-sensitized solar cells. ► Conversion efficiency of 2.5% was found on the high resistance CNT substrates. ► Barriers formed at the CNT–ZnO interface are determined by impedance spectroscopy

Convenient preparation of ITO nanoparticles inks for transparent conductive thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ito, Daisuke; Masuko, Keiichiro; Weintraub, Benjamin A.; McKenzie, Lallie C.; Hutchison, James E.

2012-01-01

Tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) nanoparticles are useful precursors to transparent electrodes in a variety of technologically important applications. We synthesized ITO nanoparticles from indium and tin acetylacetonates in oleyl alcohol using a novel temperature ramp profile. The monodispersed ITO nanoparticles have an average diameter of 8.6 nm and form dense, flat films by simple spin coating. The thickness of the film can be controlled by varying the number of additional depositions. The resulting ITO film is transparent and has a resistivity of 7 × 10 −3 Ω cm after sintering at 300 °C. Using a suitable solvent, it is possible to coat high-aspect-ratio structures with ITO nanoparticles. This approach to ITO coatings is greener and offers a number of advantages for transparent electrodes because it is highly versatile, easily scalable, and supports low-cost manufacturing.

Transparent Conductive Nanostructures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

None

2008-06-22

The objectives of this program between UT-Battelle, LLC (the ''Contractor'') and (Battelle Memorial Institute) (the "Participant") were directed towards achieving significant improvement: in the electrical conductivity and optical/infrared transmission of single-wall carbon nanotube (SWNT)-based composite materials. These materials will be used in coating applications that range from aircraft canopies to display applications. The goal of the project was to obtain supported mats of SWNTs with sheet conductivities approaching 10 ohms/square combined with high optical transmission (>85% transmission at 550 nm), thereby permitting their application as a replacement for indium tin oxide (ITO) in a variety of applications such as flexible displays.

Application of hydrogen-doped In2O3 transparent conductive oxide to thin-film microcrystalline Si solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koida, Takashi; Sai, Hitoshi; Kondo, Michio

2010-01-01

Hydrogen-doped In 2 O 3 (IO:H) films with high electron mobility and improved near-infrared (NIR) transparency have been applied as a transparent conducting oxide (TCO) electrode in substrate-type hydrogenated microcrystalline silicon (μc-Si:H) solar cells. The incorporation of IO:H, instead of conventional Sn-doped In 2 O 3 , improved the short-circuit current density (J sc ) and the resulting conversion efficiency. Optical analysis of the solar cells and TCO films revealed that the improvement in J sc is due to the improved spectral sensitivity in the visible and NIR wavelengths by reduction of absorption loss caused by free carriers in the TCO films.

Spectral and optical performance of electrochromic poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) deposited on transparent conducting oxide coated glass and polymer substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sindhu, S.; Narasimha Rao, K.; Ahuja, Sharath; Kumar, Anil; Gopal, E.S.R.

2006-01-01

Electrochromic devices utilizing conjugated polymers as electrochromic layers have gained increasing attention owing to their optical properties, fast switching times and contrast ratios. Polyethylenedioxythiophene (PEDOT) is an excellent material from its electrochromic properties, high conductivity and high stability in the doped form. Aqueous dispersions of PEDOT were either spin coated or electro-polymerized on transparent conducting oxide coated glass and polyethylene tetraphthalate (PET) film substrates. The spectro- and opto-electrochemical studies of the films on transparent conducting oxide coated glass/PET substrates were performed. These films have application in the fabrication of electrochromic windows (smart windows). Smart window devices having excellent switching characteristics over wide range of temperature are used for glazing applications. The aerospace industry is interested in the development of visors and windows that can control glare for pilots and passengers, especially if the coatings can be made on curved surfaces and electrically conducting

Low Temperature Synthesis of Fluorine-Doped Tin Oxide Transparent Conducting Thin Film by Spray Pyrolysis Deposition.

Science.gov (United States)

Ko, Eun-Byul; Choi, Jae-Seok; Jung, Hyunsung; Choi, Sung-Churl; Kim, Chang-Yeoul

2016-02-01

Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) is widely used for the application of flat panel display like liquid crystal displays and plasma display panel. It is also applied in the field of touch panel, solar cell electrode, low-emissivity glass, defrost window, and anti-static material. Fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) thin films were fabricated by spray pyrolysis of ethanol-added FTO precursor solutions. FTO thin film by spray pyrolysis is very much investigated and normally formed at high temperature, about 500 degrees C. However, these days, flexible electronics draw many attentions in the field of IT industry and the research for flexible transparent conducting thin film is also required. In the industrial field, indium-tin oxide (ITO) film on polymer substrate is widely used for touch panel and displays. In this study, we investigated the possibility of FTO thin film formation at relatively low temperature of 250 degrees C. We found out that the control of volume of input precursor and exhaust gases could make it possible to form FTO thin film with a relatively low electrical resistance, less than 100 Ohm/sq and high optical transmittance about 88%.

Deep vs shallow nature of oxygen vacancies and consequent n -type carrier concentrations in transparent conducting oxides

Science.gov (United States)

Buckeridge, J.; Catlow, C. R. A.; Farrow, M. R.; Logsdail, A. J.; Scanlon, D. O.; Keal, T. W.; Sherwood, P.; Woodley, S. M.; Sokol, A. A.; Walsh, A.

2018-05-01

The source of n -type conductivity in undoped transparent conducting oxides has been a topic of debate for several decades. The point defect of most interest in this respect is the oxygen vacancy, but there are many conflicting reports on the shallow versus deep nature of its related electronic states. Here, using a hybrid quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical embedded cluster approach, we have computed formation and ionization energies of oxygen vacancies in three representative transparent conducting oxides: In2O3 ,SnO2, and ZnO. We find that, in all three systems, oxygen vacancies form well-localized, compact donors. We demonstrate, however, that such compactness does not preclude the possibility of these states being shallow in nature, by considering the energetic balance between the vacancy binding electrons that are in localized orbitals or in effective-mass-like diffuse orbitals. Our results show that, thermodynamically, oxygen vacancies in bulk In2O3 introduce states above the conduction band minimum that contribute significantly to the observed conductivity properties of undoped samples. For ZnO and SnO2, the states are deep, and our calculated ionization energies agree well with thermochemical and optical experiments. Our computed equilibrium defect and carrier concentrations, however, demonstrate that these deep states may nevertheless lead to significant intrinsic n -type conductivity under reducing conditions at elevated temperatures. Our study indicates the importance of oxygen vacancies in relation to intrinsic carrier concentrations not only in In2O3 , but also in SnO2 and ZnO.

Fabrication of nano Delafossite LiCo{sub 0.5}Fe{sub 0.5}O{sub 2} as the new adsorbent in efficient removal of reactive blue 5 from aqueous solutions

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Khosravi, Iman, E-mail: khosraviiman@yahoo.com [Department of Chemistry, Qeshm Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qeshm (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Yazdanbakhsh, Mohammad [Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad 917791436 (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Eftekhar, Melika [Department of Chemistry, Qeshm Branch, Islamic Azad University, Qeshm (Iran, Islamic Republic of); Haddadi, Zohreh [Department of Chemistry, Faculty of Sciences, Ferdowsi University of Mashhad, Mashhad 917791436 (Iran, Islamic Republic of)

2013-06-01

Highlights: ► Fabrication of nano Delafossite LiCo{sub 0.5}Fe{sub 0.5}O{sub 2} by sol–gel method. ► Kinetic study of the adsorption properties. ► Removal of reactive blue 5 (RB5) as a reactive dye by the prepared new nanocatalyst. - Abstract: In this paper, nanoparticles of delafossite-type LiCo{sub 0.5}Fe{sub 0.5}O{sub 2} were prepared by sol–gel method in the presence of maleic acid as a chelating agent. The nanoparticles were characterized using differential thermal analysis, X-ray powder diffraction, Fourier infrared spectroscopy, transmission electron microscope, scanning electron microscopy and scanning tunneling microscopy. The nanoparticles showed the excellent adsorption properties towards reactive dye, reactive blue 5 (RB5). The adsorption studies were carried out at different pH values, various adsorbent dosages and contact time in a batch experiments. The kinetic studies indicate that the removal process obeys the second-order kinetic equation. Also, the isotherm evaluations reveal that the adsorption of RB5 by the nanoparticles follows the Freundlich model.

Tungsten oxide proton conducting films for low-voltage transparent oxide-based thin-film transistors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhang, Hongliang; Wan, Qing; Wan, Changjin; Wu, Guodong; Zhu, Liqiang

2013-01-01

Tungsten oxide (WO x ) electrolyte films deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering showed a high room temperature proton conductivity of 1.38 × 10 −4 S/cm with a relative humidity of 60%. Low-voltage transparent W-doped indium-zinc-oxide thin-film transistors gated by WO x -based electrolytes were self-assembled on glass substrates by one mask diffraction method. Enhancement mode operation with a large current on/off ratio of 4.7 × 10 6 , a low subthreshold swing of 108 mV/decade, and a high field-effect mobility 42.6 cm 2 /V s was realized. Our results demonstrated that WO x -based proton conducting films were promising gate dielectric candidates for portable low-voltage oxide-based devices.

Properties of transparent and conductive Al:ZnO/Au/Al:ZnO multilayers on flexible PET substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Dimopoulos, T.; Bauch, M.; Wibowo, R.A.; Bansal, N.; Hamid, R.; Auer, M.; Jäger, M.; List-Kratochvil, E.J.W.

2015-01-01

Highlights: • Transparent, low resistive AZO/Au/AZO layers were sputtered on PET substrates. • AZO/Au/AZO has higher figure of merit than ITO for specific Au thicknesses. • The resistance of AZO/Au/AZO is stable against repetitive substrate bending. • AZO/Au/AZO electrode performance is comparable to ITO in light emitting diodes. - Abstract: We investigate the structural, electrical and optical properties of transparent electrodes, consisting of Al-doped ZnO (AZO) and ultrathin Au layers, sputtered on polyethylene terephthalate (PET). These electrodes are relevant for optoelectronic devices and thin film photovoltaics. When deposited on AZO, Au films as thin as 3 nm form electrically conductive, meandering structures, whereas uniform Au films are obtained from a thickness of 5 nm. The sheet resistance decreases with Au thickness, reaching 7 Ω for 11 nm-thick Au. AZO/Au/AZO trilayers combine lowest resistance with highest transparency, while their resistance stability against bending fatigue is superior to the Sn-doped In 2 O 3 (ITO) electrode. The figure of merit of AZO/Au/AZO is larger than of ITO for Au thickness equal to or larger than 9 nm. To demonstrate the applicability of the AZO/Au/AZO transparent electrode, simple organic light emitting diodes were fabricated and tested in comparison to PET/ITO standard substrates

Properties of transparent and conductive Al:ZnO/Au/Al:ZnO multilayers on flexible PET substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dimopoulos, T., E-mail: theodoros.dimopoulos@ait.ac.at [AIT-Austrian Institute of Technology, Energy Department, Photovoltaic Systems, Giefinggasse 2, 1210, Vienna (Austria); Bauch, M.; Wibowo, R.A.; Bansal, N. [AIT-Austrian Institute of Technology, Energy Department, Photovoltaic Systems, Giefinggasse 2, 1210, Vienna (Austria); Hamid, R. [AIT-Austrian Institute of Technology, Mobility Department, Electric Drive Technologies, Giefinggasse 2, 1210, Vienna (Austria); Auer, M.; Jäger, M. [NanoTecCenter Weiz Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, Franz-Pichler Straße 32, A-8160 Weiz (Austria); List-Kratochvil, E.J.W. [NanoTecCenter Weiz Forschungsgesellschaft mbH, Franz-Pichler Straße 32, A-8160 Weiz (Austria); Institute of Solid State Physics, Graz University of Technology, Petersgasse 16, A-8010 Graz (Austria)

2015-10-15

Highlights: • Transparent, low resistive AZO/Au/AZO layers were sputtered on PET substrates. • AZO/Au/AZO has higher figure of merit than ITO for specific Au thicknesses. • The resistance of AZO/Au/AZO is stable against repetitive substrate bending. • AZO/Au/AZO electrode performance is comparable to ITO in light emitting diodes. - Abstract: We investigate the structural, electrical and optical properties of transparent electrodes, consisting of Al-doped ZnO (AZO) and ultrathin Au layers, sputtered on polyethylene terephthalate (PET). These electrodes are relevant for optoelectronic devices and thin film photovoltaics. When deposited on AZO, Au films as thin as 3 nm form electrically conductive, meandering structures, whereas uniform Au films are obtained from a thickness of 5 nm. The sheet resistance decreases with Au thickness, reaching 7 Ω for 11 nm-thick Au. AZO/Au/AZO trilayers combine lowest resistance with highest transparency, while their resistance stability against bending fatigue is superior to the Sn-doped In{sub 2}O{sub 3} (ITO) electrode. The figure of merit of AZO/Au/AZO is larger than of ITO for Au thickness equal to or larger than 9 nm. To demonstrate the applicability of the AZO/Au/AZO transparent electrode, simple organic light emitting diodes were fabricated and tested in comparison to PET/ITO standard substrates.

Transparent conducting oxide films of group V doped titania prepared by aqueous chemical solution deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Elen, Ken; Capon, Boris; De Dobbelaere, Christopher; Dewulf, Daan; Peys, Nick; Detavernier, Christophe; Hardy, An; Van Bael, Marlies K.

2014-01-01

Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) films of titania doped with vanadium (V), niobium (Nb) and tantalum (Ta) are obtained by aqueous Chemical Solution Deposition (CSD). The effect of the dopant on the crystallization and microstructure of the resulting films is examined by means of X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. During annealing of the thin films, in-situ characterization of the crystal structure and sheet resistance is carried out. Niobium doped anatase films, obtained after annealing in forming gas, show a resistivity of 0,28 Ohm cm, which is the lowest resistivity reported for a solution deposited anatase-based TCO so far. Here, we demonstrate that aqueous CSD may provide a strategy for scalable TCO production in the future. - Highlights: • Aqueous chemical solution deposition of doped titanium dioxide • Doping delays the phase transition from anatase to rutile • Lowest resistivity after doping with niobium and annealing in Forming Gas • Transparency higher than 80% in the visible range of optical spectrum

Transparent conducting oxide films of group V doped titania prepared by aqueous chemical solution deposition

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Elen, Ken [Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium); IMEC vzw division IMOMEC, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium); Strategisch Initiatief Materialen (SIM), SoPPoM Program (Belgium); Capon, Boris [Strategisch Initiatief Materialen (SIM), SoPPoM Programm (Belgium); Coating and Contacting of Nanostructures, Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281 S1, B-9000 Ghent (Belgium); De Dobbelaere, Christopher [Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium); Dewulf, Daan [Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium); IMEC vzw division IMOMEC, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium); Peys, Nick [Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium); IMEC vzw, Kapeldreef 75, B-3001 Heverlee (Belgium); Detavernier, Christophe [Coating and Contacting of Nanostructures, Ghent University, Krijgslaan 281 S1, B-9000 Ghent (Belgium); Hardy, An [Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium); IMEC vzw division IMOMEC, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium); Van Bael, Marlies K., E-mail: marlies.vanbael@uhasselt.be [Inorganic and Physical Chemistry, Institute for Materials Research, Hasselt University, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium); IMEC vzw division IMOMEC, Agoralaan Building D, B-3590 Diepenbeek (Belgium)

2014-03-31

Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) films of titania doped with vanadium (V), niobium (Nb) and tantalum (Ta) are obtained by aqueous Chemical Solution Deposition (CSD). The effect of the dopant on the crystallization and microstructure of the resulting films is examined by means of X-ray diffraction and electron microscopy. During annealing of the thin films, in-situ characterization of the crystal structure and sheet resistance is carried out. Niobium doped anatase films, obtained after annealing in forming gas, show a resistivity of 0,28 Ohm cm, which is the lowest resistivity reported for a solution deposited anatase-based TCO so far. Here, we demonstrate that aqueous CSD may provide a strategy for scalable TCO production in the future. - Highlights: • Aqueous chemical solution deposition of doped titanium dioxide • Doping delays the phase transition from anatase to rutile • Lowest resistivity after doping with niobium and annealing in Forming Gas • Transparency higher than 80% in the visible range of optical spectrum.

A phosphor-free white light-emitting diode using In2O3 : Tb transparent conductive light converter

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, Lung-Chien; Tien, Ching-Ho; Liao, Wei-Chian

2011-01-01

Tb-doped indium oxide (In 2 O 3 : Tb) films were deposited on a GaN-based near-ultraviolet (NUV) light-emitting diode (LED) as a transparent conductive light converter to form a white LED. The transmittance of the In 2 O 3 : Tb film (Tb at 10 wt%) exceeded 80% in visible light and the resistivity was 0.325 Ω cm. The In 2 O 3 : Tb transparent conductive light converter was also employed on GaN-based LEDs. GaN-based NUV-LEDs with In 2 O 3 : Tb film (Tb at 10 wt%) produced forward biases of 3.42 V at an injection current of 20 mA. With increasing temperature, increasing Tb 3+ concentration and increasing injection current from 20 to 100 mA, the chromaticity coordinates barely changed in the white light area. Therefore, the GaN-based NUV-LED with In 2 O 3 : Tb film had a stable white light colour, when temperature and injection current changed, and is suitable for solid-state lighting.

Smooth-surface silver nanowire electrode with high conductivity and transparency on functional layer coated flexible film

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, So Hee; Lim, Sooman; Kim, Haekyoung, E-mail: hkkim@ynu.ac.kr

2015-08-31

Transparent conductive electrode (TCE) with silver nanowires has been widely studied as an alternative of indium tin oxide for flexible electronic or optical devices such as organic light-emitting diodes, and solar cells. However, it has an issue of surface roughness due to nanowire's intrinsic properties. Here, to achieve a smooth electrode with high conductivity and transmittance on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates, a functional layer of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) is utilized with a mechanical transfer process. The silver nanowire electrode on PVP-coated PET with low surface roughness of 9 nm exhibits the low sheet resistance of 18 Ω □{sup −1} and high transmittance of 87.6%. It is produced by transferring the silver nanowire electrode spin-coated on the glass to PVP-coated PET using a pressure of 10 MPa for 10 min. Silver nanowire electrode on PVP-coated PET demonstrates the stable sheet resistance of 18 Ω □{sup −1} after the mechanical taping test due to strong adhesion between PVP functional layer and silver nanowires. Smooth TCE with silver nanowires could be proposed as a transparent electrode for flexible electronic or optical devices, which consist of thin electrical active layers on TCE. - Highlights: • Silver nanowire (Ag NWs) transparent electrodes were fabricated on flexible film. • Flexible film was coated with poly N-vinylpyrrolidone (PVP). • PVP layer plays roles as an adhesive layer and matrix in electrode. • Ag NWs electrode exhibited with low surface roughness of 9 nm. • Ag NWs electrode has a low resistance (18 Ω ☐{sup −1}) and high transmittance (87.6%)

Smooth-surface silver nanowire electrode with high conductivity and transparency on functional layer coated flexible film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, So Hee; Lim, Sooman; Kim, Haekyoung

2015-01-01

Transparent conductive electrode (TCE) with silver nanowires has been widely studied as an alternative of indium tin oxide for flexible electronic or optical devices such as organic light-emitting diodes, and solar cells. However, it has an issue of surface roughness due to nanowire's intrinsic properties. Here, to achieve a smooth electrode with high conductivity and transmittance on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates, a functional layer of poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) is utilized with a mechanical transfer process. The silver nanowire electrode on PVP-coated PET with low surface roughness of 9 nm exhibits the low sheet resistance of 18 Ω □ −1 and high transmittance of 87.6%. It is produced by transferring the silver nanowire electrode spin-coated on the glass to PVP-coated PET using a pressure of 10 MPa for 10 min. Silver nanowire electrode on PVP-coated PET demonstrates the stable sheet resistance of 18 Ω □ −1 after the mechanical taping test due to strong adhesion between PVP functional layer and silver nanowires. Smooth TCE with silver nanowires could be proposed as a transparent electrode for flexible electronic or optical devices, which consist of thin electrical active layers on TCE. - Highlights: • Silver nanowire (Ag NWs) transparent electrodes were fabricated on flexible film. • Flexible film was coated with poly N-vinylpyrrolidone (PVP). • PVP layer plays roles as an adhesive layer and matrix in electrode. • Ag NWs electrode exhibited with low surface roughness of 9 nm. • Ag NWs electrode has a low resistance (18 Ω ☐ −1 ) and high transmittance (87.6%)

Stable and Controllable Synthesis of Silver Nanowires for Transparent Conducting Film

Science.gov (United States)

Liu, Bitao; Yan, Hengqing; Chen, Shanyong; Guan, Youwei; Wu, Guoguo; Jin, Rong; Li, Lu

2017-03-01

Silver nanowires without particles are synthesized by a solvothermal method at temperature 150 °C. Silver nanowires are prepared via a reducing agent of glycerol and a capping agent of polyvinylpyrrolidone ( M w ≈ 1,300,000). Both of them can improve the purity of the as-prepared silver nanowires. With controllable shapes and sizes, silver nanowires are grown continuously up to 10-20 μm in length with 40-50 nm in diameter. To improve the yield of silver nanowires, the different concentrations of AgNO3 synthesis silver nanowires are discussed. The characterizations of the synthesized silver nanowires are analyzed by UV-visible absorption spectroscopy, X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscope (AFM), and silver nanowires are pumped on the cellulose membrane and heated stress on the PET. Then, the cellulose membrane is dissolved by the steam of acetone to prepare flexible transparent conducting thin film, which is detected 89.9 of transmittance and 58 Ω/□. Additionally, there is a close loop connected by the thin film, a blue LED, a pair of batteries, and a number of wires, to determinate directly the film if conductive or not.

Properties of TiO2-based transparent conducting oxide thin films on GaN(0001) surfaces

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kasai, J.; Nakao, S.; Yamada, N.; Hitosugi, T.; Moriyama, M.; Goshonoo, K.; Hoang, N. L. H.; Hasegawa, T.

2010-01-01

Anatase Nb-doped TiO 2 transparent conducting oxide has been formed on GaN(0001) surfaces using a sputtering method. Amorphous films deposited at room temperature were annealed at a substrate temperature of 500 deg. C in vacuum to form single-phase anatase films. Films with a thickness of 170 nm exhibited a resistivity of 8x10 -4 Ω cm with absorptance less than 5% at a wavelength of 460 nm. Furthermore, the refractive index of the Nb-doped TiO 2 was well matched to that of GaN. These findings indicate that Nb-doped TiO 2 is a promising material for use as transparent electrodes in GaN-based light emitting diodes (LEDs), particularly since reflection at the electrode/GaN boundary can be suppressed, enhancing the external quantum efficiency of blue LEDs.

Carbon dioxide and water adsorption on highly epitaxial Delafossite CuFeO2 thin film

Science.gov (United States)

Rojas, S.; Joshi, T.; Borisov, P.; Sarabia, M.; Lederman, D.; Cabrera, A. L.

2015-03-01

Thermal programmed desorption (TPD) of CO2 and H2O from a 200 nm thick CuFeO2 Delafossite surface was performed in a standard UHV chamber, The CuFeO2 thin film grown using Pulsed Laser Deposition (PLD) over an Al2O3 (0001) substrate with controlled O2 atmosphere resulted with highly epitaxial crystal structure. The adsorption/desorption of CO2 and H2O process was also monitored with X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) and Auger Electron Spectroscopy (AES). Our results revealed that carbon dioxide interacts with CuFeO2 forming Fe carbonates compounds on its surface. Hydroxides were also formed on the surface due to water presence. Using TPD data, Arrhenius plots for CO2 and water desorption were done and activation energy for desorption was obtained. Funds FONDECyT 1130372; Thanks to P. Ferrari.

Aluminum-doped zinc oxide films as transparent conductive electrode for organic light-emitting devices

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jiang, X.; Wong, F.L.; Fung, M.K.; Lee, S.T.

2003-01-01

Highly transparent conductive, aluminum-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Al) films were deposited on glass substrates by midfrequency magnetron sputtering of metallic aluminum-doped zinc target. ZnO:Al films with surface work functions between 3.7 and 4.4 eV were obtained by varying the sputtering conditions. Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) were fabricated on these ZnO:Al films. A current efficiency of higher than 3.7 cd/A, was achieved. For comparison, 3.9 cd/A was achieved by the reference OLEDs fabricated on commercial indium-tin-oxide substrates

Improved transparent-conducting properties in N2- and H2- annealed GaZnO thin films grown on glass substrates

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Youngmin; Kim, Deukyoung; Lee, Sejoon

2012-01-01

The effects of N 2 - and H 2 - annealing on the transparent-conducting properties of Ga-doped ZnO (GaZnO) were examined. The as-grown GaZnO thin film, which was deposited on a soda-lime glass substrate by r.f. magnetron sputtering, exhibited moderate transparent-conducting properties: a resistivity of ∼10 0 Ω·cm and an optical transmittance of ∼86%. After annealing in N 2 or H 2 , the GaZnO samples showed great improvements in both the electrical and the optical properties. Particularly, in the H 2 -annealed sample, a dramatic decrease in the resistivity (7 x 10 -4 Ω·cm) with a considerable increase in the carrier concentration (4.22 x 10 21 cm -3 ) was observed. This is attributed to both an increase in the number of Ga-O bonds and a reduction in the number of chemisorbed oxygen atoms though H 2 annealing. The sample revealed an enhanced optical transmittance (∼91%), which comes from the Burstein-Moss effect. Namely, a blue-shift of the optical absorption edge, which results from the increased carrier concentration, was observed in the H 2 -annealed sample. The results suggest that hydrogen annealing can help improve the transparent conducting properties of GaZnO via a modification of the electrochemical bonding structures.

Electrical and optical properties of Zn–In–Sn–O transparent conducting thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Carreras, Paz; Antony, Aldrin; Rojas, Fredy; Bertomeu, Joan

2011-01-01

Indium tin oxide (ITO) is one of the widely used transparent conductive oxides (TCO) for application as transparent electrode in thin film silicon solar cells or thin film transistors owing to its low resistivity and high transparency. Nevertheless, indium is a scarce and expensive element and ITO films require high deposition temperature to achieve good electrical and optical properties. On the other hand, although not competing as ITO, doped Zinc Oxide (ZnO) is a promising and cheaper alternative. Therefore, our strategy has been to deposit ITO and ZnO multicomponent thin films at room temperature by radiofrequency (RF) magnetron co-sputtering in order to achieve TCOs with reduced indium content. Thin films of the quaternary system Zn–In–Sn–O (ZITO) with improved electrical and optical properties have been achieved. The samples were deposited by applying different RF powers to ZnO target while keeping a constant RF power to ITO target. This led to ZITO films with zinc content ratio varying between 0 and 67%. The optical, electrical and morphological properties have been thoroughly studied. The film composition was analysed by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy. The films with 17% zinc content ratio showed the lowest resistivity (6.6 × 10 −4 Ω cm) and the highest transmittance (above 80% in the visible range). Though X-ray Diffraction studies showed amorphous nature for the films, using High Resolution Transmission Electron Microscopy we found that the microstructure of the films consisted of nanometric crystals embedded in a compact amorphous matrix. The effect of post deposition annealing on the films in both reducing and oxidizing atmospheres were studied. The changes were found to strongly depend on the zinc content ratio in the films.

Pulsed laser deposition of transparent conductive oxide thin films on flexible substrates

Science.gov (United States)

Socol, G.; Socol, M.; Stefan, N.; Axente, E.; Popescu-Pelin, G.; Craciun, D.; Duta, L.; Mihailescu, C. N.; Mihailescu, I. N.; Stanculescu, A.; Visan, D.; Sava, V.; Galca, A. C.; Luculescu, C. R.; Craciun, V.

2012-11-01

The influence of target-substrate distance during pulsed laser deposition of indium zinc oxide (IZO), indium tin oxide (ITO) and aluminium-doped zinc oxide (AZO) thin films grown on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates was investigated. It was found that the properties of such flexible transparent conductive oxide (TCO)/PET electrodes critically depend on this parameter. The TCO films that were deposited at distances of 6 and 8 cm exhibited an optical transmittance higher than 90% in the visible range and electrical resistivities around 5 × 10-4 Ω cm. In addition to these excellent electrical and optical characteristics the films grown at 8 cm distance were homogenous, smooth, adherent, and without cracks or any other extended defects, being suitable for opto-electronic device applications.

Structural, optical and electrical characterization of ITO, ITO/Ag and ITO/Ni transparent conductive electrodes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ali, Ahmad Hadi, E-mail: ahadi@uthm.edu.my [Nano-Optoelectronics Research and Technology Laboratory, School of Physics, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang (Malaysia); Science Department, Faculty of Science, Technology and Human Development, Universiti Tun Hussein Onn Malaysia, Johor (Malaysia); Shuhaimi, Ahmad [Low Dimensional Materials Research Centre, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Universiti Malaya, Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia); Hassan, Zainuriah [Nano-Optoelectronics Research and Technology Laboratory, School of Physics, Universiti Sains Malaysia, Penang (Malaysia)

2014-01-01

We report on the transparent conductive oxides (TCO) characteristics based on the indium tin oxides (ITO) and ITO/metal thin layer as an electrode for optoelectronics device applications. ITO, ITO/Ag and ITO/Ni were deposited on Si and glass substrate by thermal evaporator and radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering at room temperature. Post deposition annealing was performed on the samples in air at moderate temperature of 500 °C and 600 °C. The structural, optical and electrical properties of the ITO and ITO/metal were characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), UV–Vis spectrophotometer, Hall effect measurement system and atomic force microscope (AFM). The XRD spectrum reveals significant polycrystalline peaks of ITO (2 2 2) and Ag (1 1 1) after post annealing process. The post annealing also improves the visible light transmittance and electrical resistivity of the samples. Figure of merit (FOM) of the ITO, ITO/Ag and ITO/Ni were determined as 5.5 × 10{sup −3} Ω{sup −1}, 8.4 × 10{sup −3} Ω{sup −1} and 3.0 × 10{sup −5} Ω{sup −1}, respectively. The results show that the post annealed ITO with Ag intermediate layer improved the efficiency of the transparent conductive electrodes (TCE) as compared to the ITO and ITO/Ni.

Rapid thermal processing of nano-crystalline indium tin oxide transparent conductive oxide coatings on glass by flame impingement technology

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Schoemaker, S.; Willert-Porada, M.

2009-01-01

Indium tin oxide (ITO) is still the best suited material for transparent conductive oxides, when high transmission in the visible range, high infrared reflection or high electrical conductivity is needed. Current approaches on powder-based printable ITO coatings aim at minimum consumption of active coating and low processing costs. The paper describes how fast firing by flame impingement is used for effective sintering of ITO-coatings applied on glass. The present study correlates process parameters of fast firing by flame impingement with optoelectronic properties and changes in the microstructure of suspension derived nano-particulate films. With optimum process parameters the heat treated coatings had a sheet resistance below 0.5 kΩ/ □ combined with a transparency higher than 80%. To characterize the influence of the burner type on the process parameters and the coating functionality, two types of methane/oxygen burner were compared: a diffusion burner and a premixed burner

Improved Flexible Transparent Conductive Electrodes based on Silver Nanowire Networks by a Simple Sunlight Illumination Approach

Science.gov (United States)

Kou, Pengfei; Yang, Liu; Chang, Cheng; He, Sailing

2017-01-01

Silver nanowire (Ag NW) networks have attracted wide attention as transparent electrodes for emerging flexible optoelectronics. However, the sheet resistance is greatly limited by large wire-to-wire contact resistances. Here, we propose a simple sunlight illumination approach to remarkably improve their electrical conductivity without any significant degradation of the light transmittance. Because the power density is extremely low (0.1 W/cm2, 1-Sun), only slight welding between Ag NWs has been observed. Despite this, a sheet resistance of solar concentrations. Due to the reduced resistance, high-performance transparent film heaters as well as efficient defrosters have been demonstrated, which are superior to the previously-reported Ag NW based film heaters. Since the sunlight is environmentally friendly and easily available, sophisticated or expensive facilities are not necessary. Our findings are particularly meaningful and show enormous potential for outdoor applications. PMID:28169343

Superhydrophobic and anti-reflective ZnO nanorod-coated FTO transparent conductive thin films prepared by a three-step method

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Li, Bao-jia, E-mail: li_bjia@126.com [School of Materials Science and Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013 (China); Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Center for Photon Manufacturing Science and Technology, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013 (China); Huang, Li-jing; Ren, Nai-fei [Jiangsu Provincial Key Laboratory of Center for Photon Manufacturing Science and Technology, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013 (China); School of Mechanical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013 (China); Kong, Xia; Cai, Yun-long; Zhang, Jie-lu [Jiangsu Tailong Reduction Box Co. Ltd., Taixing, 225400 (China)

2016-07-25

A ZnO nanorod-coated FTO film was prepared by sputtering an AZO layer on FTO glass, thermal annealing of the AZO/FTO film, and hydrothermal growth of ZnO nanorods at 70 °C on the annealed AZO/FTO film using zinc foils as zinc source. Two other ZnO nanorod-coated FTO films were also prepared by hydrothermal growths of ZnO nanorods on the FTO glass and the unannealed AZO/FTO film respectively for comparison purpose. The results were observed in detail using X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, water contact/sliding angle measurement, spectrophotometry and four-point probe measurement. The ZnO nanorods on the annealed AZO/FTO film were found to exhibit denser distribution and better orientation than those on the FTO glass and the unannealed AZO/FTO film. As a result, the ZnO nanorod-coated annealed AZO/FTO film demonstrated superhydrophobicity, high transparency and low reflectance in the visible range. Also this film had the lowest sheet resistance of 4.0 Ω/sq, implying its good electrical conductivity. This investigation provides a valuable reference for developing multifunctional transparent conductive films. - Highlights: • ZnO nanorod-coated annealed AZO/FTO film was obtained by a three-step method. • FTO and unannealed AZO/FTO films were also used as substrates for comparison. • ZnO nanorods on the annealed AZO/FTO film were denser and more vertically-oriented. • The ZnO nanorod-coated annealed AZO/FTO film (Z/TA-FTO) had superhydrophobicity. • The Z/TA-FTO exhibited high transparency, low reflectance and good conductivity.

Carbon nanotubes length optimization for preparation of improved transparent and conducting thin film substrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mansoor Farbod

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Transparent and conductive thin films of multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs with different lengths were prepared on glass substrates by the spin coating method. In order to reduce the MWCNTs length, they were functionalized. The initial length of MWCNTs (10–15 μm was reduced to 1200, 205 and 168 nm after 30, 60 and 120 min refluxing time, respectively. After post annealing at 285 °C for 24 h, the electrical and optical properties were greatly improved for functionalized MWCNT thin films. They strongly depend on the length of CNTs. The optical transmittance of the film prepared using 30 min reflux CNTs was 2.6% and 6.6% higher than that of the 60 min and 120 min refluxed samples respectively. The sheet resistance of this film showed reductions of 45% and 80% as well. The film also exhibited the least roughness. The percolative figure of merit, which is proportional to the transparency and disproportional to the sheet resistance, was found to be higher for the sample with 30 min refluxed MWCNTs.

Transparent Conducting Nb-Doped TiO2 Electrodes Activated by Laser Annealing for Inexpensive Flexible Organic Solar Cells

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Jung-Hsiang; Lin, Chia-Chi; Lin, Yi-Chang

2012-01-01

A KrF excimer laser (λ= 248 nm) has been adopted for annealing cost-effective Nb-doped TiO2 (NTO) films. Sputtered NTO layers were annealed on SiO2-coated flexible poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) substrates. This local laser annealing technique is very useful for the formation of anatase NTO electrodes used in flexible organic solar cells (OSCs). An amorphous NTO film with a high resistivity and a low transparency was transformed significantly into a conductive and transparent anatase NTO electrode by laser irradiation. The 210 nm anatase NTO film shows a sheet resistance of 50 Ω and an average optical transmittance of 83.5% in the wavelength range from 450 to 600 nm after annealing at 0.25 J/cm2. The activation of Nb dopants and the formation of the anatase phase contribute to the high conductivity of the laser-annealed NTO electrode. Nb activation causes an increase in the optical band gap due to the Burstein-Moss effect. The electrical properties are in agreement with the material characteristics determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis and secondary ion mass spectrometry (SIMS). The irradiation energy for the NTO electrode also affects the performance of the organic solar cell. The laser annealing technique provides good properties of the anatase NTO film used as a transparent electrode for flexible organic solar cells (OSCs) without damage to the PET substrate or layer delamination from the substrate.

Synthesis and Characterization of Graphene/ITO Nanoparticle Hybrid Transparent Conducting Electrode

Institute of Scientific and Technical Information of China (English)

Jae-Kwan Kim; Ji-Myon Lee

2018-01-01

The combination of graphene with conductive nanoparticles, forming graphene–nanoparticle hybrid materials, offers a number of excellent properties for advanced engineering applications. A novel and simple method was developed to deposit 10 wt% tin-doped indium tin oxide (ITO) nanoparticles on graphene. The method involved a combination of a solution-based environmen-tally friendly electroless deposition approach and subse-quent vacuum annealing.A stable organic-free solution of ITO was prepared from economical salts of In(NO3)3?H2O and SnCl4. The obtained ITO nanostructure exhibited a unique architecture, with uniformly dispersed 25–35 nm size ITO nanoparticles, containing only the crystallized In2O3phase.The synthesized ITO nanoparticles–graphene hybrid exhibited very good and reproducible optical transparency in the visible range (more than 85%) and a 28.2% improvement in electrical conductivity relative to graphene synthesized by chemical vapor deposition.It was observed that the ITO nanoparticles affect the position of the Raman signal of graphene,in which the D,G,and 2D peaks were redshifted by 5.65, 5.69, and 9.74 cm-1,respectively, and the annealing conditions had no signifi-cant effect on the Raman signatures of graphene.

Synthesis and Characterization of Graphene/ITO Nanoparticle Hybrid Transparent Conducting Electrode

Science.gov (United States)

Hemasiri, Bastian Waduge Naveen Harindu; Kim, Jae-Kwan; Lee, Ji-Myon

2018-03-01

The combination of graphene with conductive nanoparticles, forming graphene-nanoparticle hybrid materials, offers a number of excellent properties for advanced engineering applications. A novel and simple method was developed to deposit 10 wt% tin-doped indium tin oxide (ITO) nanoparticles on graphene. The method involved a combination of a solution-based environmentally friendly electroless deposition approach and subsequent vacuum annealing. A stable organic-free solution of ITO was prepared from economical salts of In(NO3) 3 · H2O and SnCl4. The obtained ITO nanostructure exhibited a unique architecture, with uniformly dispersed 25-35 nm size ITO nanoparticles, containing only the crystallized In2O3 phase. The synthesized ITO nanoparticles-graphene hybrid exhibited very good and reproducible optical transparency in the visible range (more than 85%) and a 28.2% improvement in electrical conductivity relative to graphene synthesized by chemical vapor deposition. It was observed that the ITO nanoparticles affect the position of the Raman signal of graphene, in which the D, G, and 2D peaks were redshifted by 5.65, 5.69, and 9.74 cm-1, respectively, and the annealing conditions had no significant effect on the Raman signatures of graphene. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

Phosphonic Acids for Interfacial Engineering of Transparent Conductive Oxides

KAUST Repository

Paniagua, Sergio A.; Giordano, Anthony J.; Smith, O’ Neil L.; Barlow, Stephen; Li, Hong; Armstrong, Neal R.; Pemberton, Jeanne E.; Bredas, Jean-Luc; Ginger, David; Marder, Seth R.

2016-01-01

Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs), such as indium tin oxide and zinc oxide, play an important role as electrode materials in organic-semiconductor devices. The properties of the inorganic-organic interface - the offset between the TCO Fermi level and the relevant transport level, the extent to which the organic semiconductor can wet the oxide surface, and the influence of the surface on semiconductor morphology - significantly affect device performance. This review surveys the literature on TCO modification with phosphonic acids (PAs), which has increasingly been used to engineer these interfacial properties. The first part outlines the relevance of TCO surface modification to organic electronics, surveys methods for the synthesis of PAs, discusses the modes by which they can bind to TCO surfaces, and compares PAs to alternative organic surface modifiers. The next section discusses methods of PA monolayer deposition, the kinetics of monolayer formation, and structural evidence regarding molecular orientation on TCOs. The next sections discuss TCO work-function modification using PAs, tuning of TCO surface energy using PAs, and initiation of polymerizations from TCO-tethered PAs. Finally, studies that examine the use of PA-modified TCOs in organic light-emitting diodes and organic photovoltaics are compared. © 2016 American Chemical Society.

Phosphonic Acids for Interfacial Engineering of Transparent Conductive Oxides

KAUST Repository

Paniagua, Sergio A.

2016-05-26

Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs), such as indium tin oxide and zinc oxide, play an important role as electrode materials in organic-semiconductor devices. The properties of the inorganic-organic interface - the offset between the TCO Fermi level and the relevant transport level, the extent to which the organic semiconductor can wet the oxide surface, and the influence of the surface on semiconductor morphology - significantly affect device performance. This review surveys the literature on TCO modification with phosphonic acids (PAs), which has increasingly been used to engineer these interfacial properties. The first part outlines the relevance of TCO surface modification to organic electronics, surveys methods for the synthesis of PAs, discusses the modes by which they can bind to TCO surfaces, and compares PAs to alternative organic surface modifiers. The next section discusses methods of PA monolayer deposition, the kinetics of monolayer formation, and structural evidence regarding molecular orientation on TCOs. The next sections discuss TCO work-function modification using PAs, tuning of TCO surface energy using PAs, and initiation of polymerizations from TCO-tethered PAs. Finally, studies that examine the use of PA-modified TCOs in organic light-emitting diodes and organic photovoltaics are compared. © 2016 American Chemical Society.

Rapid fabrication of transparent conductive films with controllable sheet resistance on glass substrates by laser annealing of diamond-like carbon films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Keunhee; Ki, Hyungson

2016-01-01

We report a laser-based method for directly fabricating large-area, transparent conductive films with customizable electrical resistance on glass. In this method, a diamond-like carbon (DLC) film is deposited first on a glass substrate by pulsed laser deposition, which is then annealed in a helium shielding environment by a 2 kW continuous-wave fiber laser with a wavelength of 1070 nm, which is transparent to glass but is absorbed by DLC to transform the amorphous carbons to graphene. When a 510 nm thick film was annealed at a scanning speed of 1 m/s by a 200 μm top-hat laser beam, the sp 3 fraction was decreased from 43.1% to 8.1% after the annealing process, and the transformed film showed a transparency of ∼80% (at 550 nm) and a sheet resistance of ∼2050 Ω/sq. We also showed that sheet resistance and transparency can be controlled by changing processing parameters. To show the scalability of the method, a 15 mm wide line beam was used to produce a 15 mm × 15 mm film. This method is simple, fully scalable, transfer-free and catalyst-free, and we believe that the fabricated films can have many applications with further research, such as transparent heating films, electromagnetic shielding films, and transparent electrodes.

Preparation of Graphene Sheets by Electrochemical Exfoliation of Graphite in Confined Space and Their Application in Transparent Conductive Films.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Hui; Wei, Can; Zhu, Kaiyi; Zhang, Yu; Gong, Chunhong; Guo, Jianhui; Zhang, Jiwei; Yu, Laigui; Zhang, Jingwei

2017-10-04

A novel electrochemical exfoliation mode was established to prepare graphene sheets efficiently with potential applications in transparent conductive films. The graphite electrode was coated with paraffin to keep the electrochemical exfoliation in confined space in the presence of concentrated sodium hydroxide as the electrolyte, yielding ∼100% low-defect (the D band to G band intensity ratio, I D /I G = 0.26) graphene sheets. Furthermore, ozone was first detected with ozone test strips, and the effect of ozone on the exfoliation of graphite foil and the microstructure of the as-prepared graphene sheets was investigated. Findings indicate that upon applying a low voltage (3 V) on the graphite foil partially coated with paraffin wax that the coating can prevent the insufficiently intercalated graphite sheets from prematurely peeling off from the graphite electrode thereby affording few-layer (graphene sheets in a yield of as much as 60%. Besides, the ozone generated during the electrochemical exfoliation process plays a crucial role in the exfoliation of graphite, and the amount of defect in the as-prepared graphene sheets is dependent on electrolytic potential and electrode distance. Moreover, the graphene-based transparent conductive films prepared by simple modified vacuum filtration exhibit an excellent transparency and a low sheet resistance after being treated with NH 4 NO 3 and annealing (∼1.21 kΩ/□ at ∼72.4% transmittance).

High Transparent and Conductive TiO2/Ag/TiO2 Multilayer Electrode Films Deposited on Sapphire Substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Loka, Chadrasekhar; Moon, Sung Whan; Choi, YiSik; Lee, Kee-Sun

2018-03-01

Transparent conducting oxides attract intense interests due to its diverse industrial applications. In this study, we report sapphire substrate-based TiO2/Ag/TiO2 (TAT) multilayer structure of indium-free transparent conductive multilayer coatings. The TAT thin films were deposited at room temperature on sapphire substrates and a rigorous analysis has been presented on the electrical and optical properties of the films as a function of Ag thickness. The optical and electrical properties were mainly controlled by the Ag mid-layer thickness of the TAT tri-layer. The TAT films showed high luminous transmittance 84% at 550 nm along with noteworthy low electrical resistance 3.65 × 10-5 Ω-cm and sheet resistance of 3.77 Ω/square, which is better are than those of amorphous ITO films and any sapphire-based dielectric/metal/dielectric multilayer stack. The carrier concentration of the films was increased with respect to Ag thickness. We obtained highest Hackke's figure of merit 43.97 × 10-3 Ω-1 from the TAT multilayer thin film with a 16 nm thick Ag mid-layer.

Investigation of ITO free transparent conducting polymer based electrode

Science.gov (United States)

Sharma, Vikas; Sapna, Sachdev, Kanupriya

2016-05-01

The last few decades have seen a significant improvement in organic semiconductor technology related to solar cell, light emitting diode and display panels. The material and structure of the transparent electrode is one of the major concerns for superior performance of devices such as OPV, OLED, touch screen and LCD display. Commonly used ITO is now restricted due to scarcity of indium, its poor mechanical properties and rigidity, and mismatch of energy levels with the active layer. Nowadays DMD (dielectric-metal-dielectric) structure is one of the prominent candidates as alternatives to ITO based electrode. We have used solution based spin coated polymer layer as the dielectric layer with silver thin film embedded in between to make a polymer-metal-polymer (PMP) structure for TCE applications. The PMP structure shows low resistivity (2.3 x 10-4Ω-cm), high carrier concentration (2.9 x 1021 cm-3) and moderate transparency. The multilayer PMP structure is characterized with XRD, AFM and Hall measurement to prove its suitability for opto-electronic device applications.

Investigation of ITO free transparent conducting polymer based electrode

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sharma, Vikas; Sapna,; Sachdev, Kanupriya

2016-01-01

The last few decades have seen a significant improvement in organic semiconductor technology related to solar cell, light emitting diode and display panels. The material and structure of the transparent electrode is one of the major concerns for superior performance of devices such as OPV, OLED, touch screen and LCD display. Commonly used ITO is now restricted due to scarcity of indium, its poor mechanical properties and rigidity, and mismatch of energy levels with the active layer. Nowadays DMD (dielectric-metal-dielectric) structure is one of the prominent candidates as alternatives to ITO based electrode. We have used solution based spin coated polymer layer as the dielectric layer with silver thin film embedded in between to make a polymer-metal-polymer (PMP) structure for TCE applications. The PMP structure shows low resistivity (2.3 x 10"−"4Ω-cm), high carrier concentration (2.9 x 10"2"1 cm"−"3) and moderate transparency. The multilayer PMP structure is characterized with XRD, AFM and Hall measurement to prove its suitability for opto-electronic device applications.

Investigation of ITO free transparent conducting polymer based electrode

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Sharma, Vikas; Sapna,; Sachdev, Kanupriya [Department of Physics, Malaviya National Institute of Technology Jaipur, JLN Marg, Jaipur-India-302017 (India)

2016-05-23

The last few decades have seen a significant improvement in organic semiconductor technology related to solar cell, light emitting diode and display panels. The material and structure of the transparent electrode is one of the major concerns for superior performance of devices such as OPV, OLED, touch screen and LCD display. Commonly used ITO is now restricted due to scarcity of indium, its poor mechanical properties and rigidity, and mismatch of energy levels with the active layer. Nowadays DMD (dielectric-metal-dielectric) structure is one of the prominent candidates as alternatives to ITO based electrode. We have used solution based spin coated polymer layer as the dielectric layer with silver thin film embedded in between to make a polymer-metal-polymer (PMP) structure for TCE applications. The PMP structure shows low resistivity (2.3 x 10{sup −4}Ω-cm), high carrier concentration (2.9 x 10{sup 21} cm{sup −3}) and moderate transparency. The multilayer PMP structure is characterized with XRD, AFM and Hall measurement to prove its suitability for opto-electronic device applications.

New transparent metal-like bilayer composite films with highly conducting layers of {theta}-(BET-TTF){sub 2}Br.3H{sub 2}O nanocrystals

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mas-Torrent, M.; Laukhina, E.; Rovira, C.; Veciana, J. [Campus Univ. de Bellaterra, Barcelona (Spain). Inst. de Ciencia de Materials; Tkacheva, V. [RAS, Chernogolovka (Russian Federation). Inst. of Problems of Chemical Physics; Zorina, L.; Khasanov, S. [RAS, Chernogolovka (Russian Federation). Inst. of Solid State Physics

2001-08-01

A novel conducting bilayer composite (BLC) film-a polycarbonate matrix with a conducting surface layer of a crystalline network of an organic conductor-is presented. A BLC film combines the high stability and physical properties of an organic conductor, in this case the molecular metal {theta}-(BET-TTF){sub 2}Br.3H{sub 2}O, with the flexibility, transparency, and low density of a polymer matrix. The determination of the optimal conditions for the preparation of the new film, which is extremely transparent and has metal-like transport properties down to liquid helium temperature, is described. (orig.)

Transparent Electrodes for Efficient Optoelectronics

KAUST Repository

Morales-Masis, Monica

2017-03-30

With the development of new generations of optoelectronic devices that combine high performance and novel functionalities (e.g., flexibility/bendability, adaptability, semi or full transparency), several classes of transparent electrodes have been developed in recent years. These range from optimized transparent conductive oxides (TCOs), which are historically the most commonly used transparent electrodes, to new electrodes made from nano- and 2D materials (e.g., metal nanowire networks and graphene), and to hybrid electrodes that integrate TCOs or dielectrics with nanowires, metal grids, or ultrathin metal films. Here, the most relevant transparent electrodes developed to date are introduced, their fundamental properties are described, and their materials are classified according to specific application requirements in high efficiency solar cells and flexible organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). This information serves as a guideline for selecting and developing appropriate transparent electrodes according to intended application requirements and functionality.

Transparent Electrodes for Efficient Optoelectronics

KAUST Repository

Morales-Masis, Monica; De Wolf, Stefaan; Woods-Robinson, Rachel; Ager, Joel W.; Ballif, Christophe

2017-01-01

With the development of new generations of optoelectronic devices that combine high performance and novel functionalities (e.g., flexibility/bendability, adaptability, semi or full transparency), several classes of transparent electrodes have been developed in recent years. These range from optimized transparent conductive oxides (TCOs), which are historically the most commonly used transparent electrodes, to new electrodes made from nano- and 2D materials (e.g., metal nanowire networks and graphene), and to hybrid electrodes that integrate TCOs or dielectrics with nanowires, metal grids, or ultrathin metal films. Here, the most relevant transparent electrodes developed to date are introduced, their fundamental properties are described, and their materials are classified according to specific application requirements in high efficiency solar cells and flexible organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs). This information serves as a guideline for selecting and developing appropriate transparent electrodes according to intended application requirements and functionality.

Versatile and Tunable Transparent Conducting Electrodes Based on Doped Graphene

KAUST Repository

Mansour, Ahmed E.

2016-11-25

The continued growth of the optoelectronics industry and the emergence of wearable and flexible electronics will continue to place an ever increasing pressure on replacing ITO, the most widely used transparent conducting electrode (TCE). Among the various candidates, graphene shows the highest optical transmittance in addition to promising electrical transport properties. The currently available large-scale synthesis routes of graphene result in polycrystalline samples rife with grain boundaries and other defects which limit its transport properties. Chemical doping of graphene is a viable route towards increasing its conductivity and tuning its work function. However, dopants are typically present at the surface of the graphene sheet, making them highly susceptible to degradation in environmental conditions. Few-layers graphene (FLG) is a more resilient form of graphene exhibiting higher conductivity and performance stability under stretching and bending as contrasted to single-layer graphene. In addition FLG presents the advantage of being amenable bulk doping by intercalation. Herein, we explore non-covalent doping routes of CVD FLG, such as surface doping, intercalation and combination thereof, through in-depth and systematic characterization of the electrical transport properties and energy levels shifts. The intercalation of FLG with Br2 and FeCl3 is demonstrated, showing the highest improvements of the figure of merit of TCEs of any doping scheme, which results from up to a five-fold increase in conductivity while maintaining the transmittance within 3% of that for the pristine value. Importantly the intercalation yields TCEs that are air-stable, due to encapsulation of the intercalant in the bulk of FLG. Surface doping with novel solution-processed metal-organic molecular species (n- and p-type) is demonstrated with an unprecedented range of work function modulation, resulting from electron transfer and the formation of molecular surface dipoles. However

Fabrication of transparent conductive tri-composite film for electrochromic application

Science.gov (United States)

Choi, Dahyun; Lee, Minji; Kim, Hyungsub; Chu, Won-shik; Chun, Doo-man; Ahn, Sung-Hoon; Lee, Caroline Sunyong

2017-12-01

A transparent conductive electrode (TCE) based on poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) was developed using a dry deposition method for application as an electrochromic (EC) device. To improve its electrical conductivity and stable EC performance, AgNW and TiO2 nanoparticles were included in the TCE film. The resulting TiO2/AgNW/PEDOT:PSS hybrid film showed electrical sheet resistivity of 23 Ω/sq., similar to that of a commercial TCE film. When +2.0 V was applied to the hybrid film, the response current was stable, maintaining a value of 2.0 mA. We found that the hybrid film could be used as an EC device, without using commercial TCE film. Antimony-doped tin oxide on indium-doped tin oxide-glass as an ion-storage layer was combined with the hybrid film, with 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (EMIM-TFSI) injected into the EC device as an ionic liquid electrolyte. The optical transmittance difference between the colored and bleached states was 23% at 630 nm; under applied voltages of -2.0 V and +2.0 V, the coloration efficiency was 127.83 cm2/C. Moreover, cyclic transmittance with switching voltage for 3 h showed stable optical transmittance of 31% at 630 nm. Cyclic voltammetry measurements indicated stable behavior over 50 cycles. Thus, the proposed TCE configuration (TiO2/AgNW/PEDOT:PSS) shows great potential as a substitute for commercial TCEs, the cost of which depends on the availability of rare-earth materials.

Transparent metals for ultrabroadband electromagnetic waves.

Science.gov (United States)

Fan, Ren-Hao; Peng, Ru-Wen; Huang, Xian-Rong; Li, Jia; Liu, Yongmin; Hu, Qing; Wang, Mu; Zhang, Xiang

2012-04-17

Making metals transparent, which could lead to fascinating applications, has long been pursued. Here we demonstrate that with narrow slit arrays metallic plates become transparent for extremely broad bandwidths; the high transmission efficiency is insensitive to the metal thickness. This work provides a guideline to develop novel devices, including transparent conducting panels, broadband metamaterials, and antireflective solar cells. Copyright © 2012 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

High power pulsed magnetron sputtering of transparent conducting oxides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sittinger, V.; Ruske, F.; Werner, W.; Jacobs, C.; Szyszka, B.; Christie, D.J.

2008-01-01

High power pulsed magnetron sputtering (HPPMS) has been used in order to study the deposition of transparent conducting oxides. We summarize the studies carried out on different materials (indium tin oxide-ITO and aluminium-doped zinc oxide-AZO) using rather different technological approaches, namely sputtering of ceramic targets and reactive sputtering. For the deposition of AZO reactive HPPMS for metallic targets has been used. A feedback control loop has been implemented in order to stabilize the discharge at any given setpoint on the hysteresis curve. The hysteresis was also found to have a rather untypical form. Reactive HPPMS was found to be a promising tool for obtaining high quality films of low total thickness. In the case of ITO deposition a ceramic target has been used. The process has been characterized in terms of its plasma emission and increasing indium ionization was found for higher peak power densities. The properties of the deposited films were compared to DC sputtered films. While for DC sputtering the choice of oxygen addition and shieldings is crucial for determining surface morphology and resistivity, in HPPMS sputtering peak power density has been found to be a good parameter for influencing the crystal structure. The morphologies obtained differ strongly from those seen in DC sputtering. At high power densities films with low surface roughness and excellent resistivity could be deposited without the use of shieldings

Stable Nafion-functionalized graphene dispersions for transparent conducting films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Yangqiao; Gao Lian; Sun Jing; Wang Yan; Zhang Jing

2009-01-01

Nafion was used for the first time to aid in preparing stable graphene dispersions in mixed water/ethanol (1:1) solvents via the reduction of graphite oxide using hydrazine. The dispersion was characterized by ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) spectra, transmission electron microscopy, zeta potential analysis, etc. It was found that for Nafion-to-graphene ratios higher than 5:1, graphene solutions with concentrations up to 1 mg ml -1 and stabilities of over three months were obtained. It was proposed that the Nafion adsorbed onto the graphene by the hydrophobic interaction of its fluoro-backbones with the graphene layer and imparted stability by an electrosteric mechanism. Furthermore, transparent and conductive films were prepared using these highly stable Nafion-stabilized graphene dispersions. The prepared Nafion-graphene films possess smooth and homogeneous surfaces and the sheet resistance was as low as 30 kΩ/sq for a transmittance of 80% at 550 nm, which was much lower than for other graphene films obtained by chemical reduction. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and Raman spectroscopy confirmed the p-doping of the graphene by Nafion. It was expected that this p-doping effect, as well as the high dispersing ability of Nafion for graphene and the connection of the sp 2 domains by residual Nafion combined to produce good properties of the Nafion-graphene films.

Organizational Transparency in the Internet Industry

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Flyverbom, Mikkel

as a panacea to concerns about privacy, organizational conduct and accountability, this paper explores the boundary work that goes into doing and promising transparency Using insights from the literature on transparency, ´sociologies of translations' and process approaches to organization, this paper captures...

Effect of cross-linkable polymer on the morphology and properties of transparent multi-walled carbon nanotube conductive films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang, Yuan-Li; Tien, Hsi-Wen; Ma, Chen-Chi M.; Teng, Chih-Chun; Yu, Yi-Hsiuan; Yang, Shin-Yi; Wei, Ming-Hsiung; Wu, Sheng-Yen

2011-01-01

In this study, we fabricated optically transparent and electrically conductive multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) thin films using a spray-coating technique. The transparency and the electrical resistance of thin film are dependent on the nanotube content deposited on the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate. Poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) and poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) were used as adhesion promoters to improve MWCNT coating more significantly. The cross-linked polymer resulted in a superior bond between the MWCNTs and the substrates. The surface electrical resistance was significantly lower than the original sheet after nitric acid (HNO 3 ) treatment because of the removed surfactant and the increased interconnecting networks of MWCNT bundles, thus improving the electrical and optical properties of the films. Stronger interaction between the MWCNTs and the substrates resulted in lower decomposition of the polymer chain and less amounts of MWCNTs separated into the HNO 3 solution. The lower sheet electrical resistance of PVP/PAA-g-MWCNT conductive films on the PET substrate was because of a more complete conductive path with the cross-linked polymer than that without. Such an improved sheet of electrical resistance varied from 8.83 x 10 4 Ω/□ to 2.65 x 10 3 Ω/□ with 5.0 wt.% PVP/PAA-g-MWCNT sprayed on the PET after acid treatment.

Effect of cross-linkable polymer on the morphology and properties of transparent multi-walled carbon nanotube conductive films

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yuan-Li; Tien, Hsi-Wen; Ma, Chen-Chi M.; Teng, Chih-Chun; Yu, Yi-Hsiuan; Yang, Shin-Yi; Wei, Ming-Hsiung; Wu, Sheng-Yen

2011-10-01

In this study, we fabricated optically transparent and electrically conductive multi-walled carbon nanotube (MWCNT) thin films using a spray-coating technique. The transparency and the electrical resistance of thin film are dependent on the nanotube content deposited on the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate. Poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) and poly(N-vinyl pyrrolidone) (PVP) were used as adhesion promoters to improve MWCNT coating more significantly. The cross-linked polymer resulted in a superior bond between the MWCNTs and the substrates. The surface electrical resistance was significantly lower than the original sheet after nitric acid (HNO 3) treatment because of the removed surfactant and the increased interconnecting networks of MWCNT bundles, thus improving the electrical and optical properties of the films. Stronger interaction between the MWCNTs and the substrates resulted in lower decomposition of the polymer chain and less amounts of MWCNTs separated into the HNO 3 solution. The lower sheet electrical resistance of PVP/PAA-g-MWCNT conductive films on the PET substrate was because of a more complete conductive path with the cross-linked polymer than that without. Such an improved sheet of electrical resistance varied from 8.83 × 10 4 Ω/□ to 2.65 × 10 3 Ω/□ with 5.0 wt.% PVP/PAA-g-MWCNT sprayed on the PET after acid treatment.

Highly transparent and conductive thin films fabricated with nano-silver/double-walled carbon nanotube composites.

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Shie-Heng; Teng, Chih-Chun; Ma, Chen-Chi M; Wang, Ikai

2011-12-01

This study develops a technique for enhancing the electrical conductivity and optical transmittance of transparent double-walled carbon nanotube (DWNT) film. Silver nanoparticles were modified with a NH(2)(CH(2))(2)SH self-assembled monolayer terminated by amino groups and subsequent surface condensation that reacted with functionalized DWNTs. Ag nanoparticles were grafted on the surface of the DWNTs. The low sheet resistance of the resulting thin conductive film on a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate was due to the increased contact areas between DWNTs and work function by grafting Ag nanoparticles on the DWNT surfaces. Increasing the contact area between DWNTs and work function improved the conductivity of the DWNT-Ag thin films. The prepared DWNT-Ag thin films had a sheet resistance of 53.4 Ω/sq with 90.5% optical transmittance at a 550 nm wavelength. After treatment with HNO(3) and annealing at 150 °C for 30 min, a lower sheet resistance of 45.8 Ω/sq and a higher transmittance of 90.4% could be attained. The value of the DC conductivity to optical conductivity (σ(DC)/σ(OP)) ratio is 121.3. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Highly thermal conductivity and infrared emissivity of flexible transparent film heaters utilizing silver-decorated carbon nanomaterials as fillers

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Li, Yu-An; Chen, Yin-Ju; Tai, Nyan-Hwa

2014-01-01

A flexible transparent film heater using functionalized few-walled carbon nanotubes and graphene nanosheets decorated with silver nanoparticles as fillers and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)- poly(4-stryrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) as a dispersant possesses excellent optoelectronic and electrothermal properties. The film possesses a low sheet resistance of 53.0 ± 4.2 ohm · sq −1 , a transmittance of 80.2 ± 0.8% at a wavelength of 550 nm, a high thermal conductivity of 142.0 ± 9.6 W · m −1  · K −1 , a quick response time of less than 60 s, stable heating performance, good reliability, low power consumption, flexibility, and uniform heat diffusion. Besides, the film shows an average infrared emissivity of 0.53 in the wavelength range of 4 to 14 μm, which shows an outstanding heat release performance by radiation. The flexible transparent film heaters adopting graphene and carbon nanotubes as fillers boast excellent electrothermal performance through heat conduction and infrared radiation, suggesting that they are good substitutes for traditional metallic and indium tin oxide film heaters. (papers)

Facile Synthesis of Ultralong and Thin Copper Nanowires and Its Application to High-Performance Flexible Transparent Conductive Electrodes

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Yaxiong; Liu, Ping; Zeng, Baoqing; Liu, Liming; Yang, Jianjun

2018-03-01

A hydrothermal method for synthesizing ultralong and thin copper nanowires (CuNWs) with average diameter of 35 nm and average length of 100 μm is demonstrated in this paper. The concerning raw materials include copric (II) chloride dihydrate (CuCl2·2H2O), octadecylamine (ODA), and ascorbic acid, which are all very cheap and nontoxic. The effect of different reaction time and different molar ratios to the reaction products were researched. The CuNWs prepared by the hydrothermal method were applied to fabricate CuNW transparent conductive electrode (TCE), which exhibited excellent conductivity-transmittance performance with low sheet resistance of 26.23 Ω /\\square and high transparency at 550 nm of 89.06% (excluding Polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate). The electrode fabrication process was carried out at room temperature, and there was no need for post-treatment. In order to decrease roughness and protect CuNW TCEs against being oxidized, we fabricated CuNW/poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) hybrid TCEs (HTCEs) using PMMA solution. The CuNW/PMMA HTCEs exhibited low surface roughness and chemical stability as compared with CuNW TCEs.

Lignin-Retaining Transparent Wood.

Science.gov (United States)

Li, Yuanyuan; Fu, Qiliang; Rojas, Ramiro; Yan, Min; Lawoko, Martin; Berglund, Lars

2017-09-11

Optically transparent wood, combining optical and mechanical performance, is an emerging new material for light-transmitting structures in buildings with the aim of reducing energy consumption. One of the main obstacles for transparent wood fabrication is delignification, where around 30 wt % of wood tissue is removed to reduce light absorption and refractive index mismatch. This step is time consuming and not environmentally benign. Moreover, lignin removal weakens the wood structure, limiting the fabrication of large structures. A green and industrially feasible method has now been developed to prepare transparent wood. Up to 80 wt % of lignin is preserved, leading to a stronger wood template compared to the delignified alternative. After polymer infiltration, a high-lignin-content transparent wood with transmittance of 83 %, haze of 75 %, thermal conductivity of 0.23 W mK -1 , and work-tofracture of 1.2 MJ m -3 (a magnitude higher than glass) was obtained. This transparent wood preparation method is efficient and applicable to various wood species. The transparent wood obtained shows potential for application in energy-saving buildings. © 2017 The Authors. Published by Wiley-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA.

High mobility In2O3:H transparent conductive oxides prepared by atomic layer deposition and solid phase crystallization

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Macco, B.; Wu, Y.; Vanhemel, D.; Kessels, W.M.M.

2014-01-01

The preparation of high-quality In2O3:H, as transparent conductive oxide (TCO), is demonstrated at low temperatures. Amorphous In2O3:H films were deposited by atomic layer deposition at 100 °C, after which they underwent solid phase crystallization by a short anneal at 200 °C. TEM analysis has shown

Ultra-fast transient plasmonics using transparent conductive oxides

Science.gov (United States)

Ferrera, Marcello; Carnemolla, Enrico G.

2018-02-01

During the last decade, plasmonic- and metamaterial-based applications have revolutionized the field of integrated photonics by allowing for deep subwavelength confinement and full control over the effective permittivity and permeability of the optical environment. However, despite the numerous remarkable proofs of principle that have been experimentally demonstrated, few key issues remain preventing a widespread of nanophotonic technologies. Among these fundamental limitations, we remind the large ohmic losses, incompatibility with semiconductor industry standards, and largely reduced dynamic tunability of the optical properties. In this article, in the larger context of the new emerging field of all-dielectric nanophotonics, we present our recent progresses towards the study of large optical nonlinearities in transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) also giving a general overview of the most relevant and recent experimental attainments using TCO-based technology. However, it is important to underline that the present article does not represent a review paper but rather an original work with a broad introduction. Our work lays in a sort of ‘hybrid’ zone in the middle between high index contrast systems, whose behaviour is well described by applying Mie scattering theory, and standard plasmonic elements where optical modes originate from the electromagnetic coupling with the electronic plasma at the metal-to-dielectric interface. Beside remaining in the context of plasmonic technologies and retaining all the fundamental peculiarities that promoted the success of plasmonics in the first place, our strategy has the additional advantage to allow for large and ultra-fast tunability of the effective complex refractive index by accessing the index-near-zero regime in bulk materials at telecom wavelength.

Improvement of Transparent Conducting Performance on Oxygen-Activated Fluorine-Doped Tin Oxide Electrodes Formed by Horizontal Ultrasonic Spray Pyrolysis Deposition.

Science.gov (United States)

Koo, Bon-Ryul; Oh, Dong-Hyeun; Riu, Doh-Hyung; Ahn, Hyo-Jin

2017-12-27

In this study, highly transparent conducting fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) electrodes were fabricated using the horizontal ultrasonic spray pyrolysis deposition. In order to improve their transparent conducting performances, we carried out oxygen activation by adjusting the ratio of O 2 /(O 2 +N 2 ) in the carrier gas (0%, 20%, and 50%) used during the deposition process. The oxygen activation on the FTO electrodes accelerated the substitution concentration of F (F O • ) into the oxygen sites in the FTO electrode while the oxygen vacancy (V O • • ) concentration was reduced. In addition, due to growth of pyramid-shaped crystallites with (200) preferred orientations, this oxygen activation caused the formation of a uniform surface structure. As a result, compared to others, the FTO electrode prepared at 50% O 2 showed excellent electrical and optical properties (sheet resistance of ∼4.0 ± 0.14 Ω/□, optical transmittance of ∼85.3%, and figure of merit of ∼5.09 ± 0.19 × 10 -2 Ω -1 ). This led to a superb photoconversion efficiency (∼7.03 ± 0.20%) as a result of the improved short-circuit current density. The photovoltaic performance improvement can be defined by the decreased sheet resistance of FTO used as a transparent conducting electrode in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs), which is due to the combined effect of the high carrier concentration by the improved F O • concentration on the FTO electrodes and the fasted Hall mobility by the formation of a uniform FTO surface structure and distortion relaxation on the FTO lattices resulting from the reduced V O • • • concentration.

High Temperature Transparent Furnace Development

Science.gov (United States)

Bates, Stephen C.

1997-01-01

This report describes the use of novel techniques for heat containment that could be used to build a high temperature transparent furnace. The primary objective of the work was to experimentally demonstrate transparent furnace operation at 1200 C. Secondary objectives were to understand furnace operation and furnace component specification to enable the design and construction of a low power prototype furnace for delivery to NASA in a follow-up project. The basic approach of the research was to couple high temperature component design with simple concept demonstration experiments that modify a commercially available transparent furnace rated at lower temperature. A detailed energy balance of the operating transparent furnace was performed, calculating heat losses through the furnace components as a result of conduction, radiation, and convection. The transparent furnace shells and furnace components were redesigned to permit furnace operation at at least 1200 C. Techniques were developed that are expected to lead to significantly improved heat containment compared with current transparent furnaces. The design of a thermal profile in a multizone high temperature transparent furnace design was also addressed. Experiments were performed to verify the energy balance analysis, to demonstrate some of the major furnace improvement techniques developed, and to demonstrate the overall feasibility of a high temperature transparent furnace. The important objective of the research was achieved: to demonstrate the feasibility of operating a transparent furnace at 1200 C.

A transparent electrode based on a metal nanotrough network.

Science.gov (United States)

Wu, Hui; Kong, Desheng; Ruan, Zhichao; Hsu, Po-Chun; Wang, Shuang; Yu, Zongfu; Carney, Thomas J; Hu, Liangbing; Fan, Shanhui; Cui, Yi

2013-06-01

Transparent conducting electrodes are essential components for numerous flexible optoelectronic devices, including touch screens and interactive electronics. Thin films of indium tin oxide-the prototypical transparent electrode material-demonstrate excellent electronic performances, but film brittleness, low infrared transmittance and low abundance limit suitability for certain industrial applications. Alternatives to indium tin oxide have recently been reported and include conducting polymers, carbon nanotubes and graphene. However, although flexibility is greatly improved, the optoelectronic performance of these carbon-based materials is limited by low conductivity. Other examples include metal nanowire-based electrodes, which can achieve sheet resistances of less than 10Ω □(-1) at 90% transmission because of the high conductivity of the metals. To achieve these performances, however, metal nanowires must be defect-free, have conductivities close to their values in bulk, be as long as possible to minimize the number of wire-to-wire junctions, and exhibit small junction resistance. Here, we present a facile fabrication process that allows us to satisfy all these requirements and fabricate a new kind of transparent conducting electrode that exhibits both superior optoelectronic performances (sheet resistance of ~2Ω □(-1) at 90% transmission) and remarkable mechanical flexibility under both stretching and bending stresses. The electrode is composed of a free-standing metallic nanotrough network and is produced with a process involving electrospinning and metal deposition. We demonstrate the practical suitability of our transparent conducting electrode by fabricating a flexible touch-screen device and a transparent conducting tape.

Highly transparent and conducting boron doped zinc oxide films for window of Dye Sensitized Solar Cell applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kumar, Vinod, E-mail: vinod.phy@gmail.com [Materials Science Group, Inter University Accelerator Centre, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067 (India); Department of Physics, Gurukula Kangri University, Haridwar 249404 (India); Singh, R.G. [Department of Electronic Science, Maharaja Agrasen College University of Delhi, New Delhi 110096 (India); Singh, Fouran [Materials Science Group, Inter University Accelerator Centre, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, New Delhi 110067 (India); Purohit, L.P. [Department of Physics, Gurukula Kangri University, Haridwar 249404 (India)

2012-12-15

Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Synthesis of Boron doped ZnO (ZnO:B) films. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Minimum of resistivity is observed to be 7.9 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -4} {Omega} cm. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Maximum transmittance {approx}91% for 450 Degree-Sign C annealed films. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Applicable for window materials in Dye Sensitized Solar Cell. - Abstract: Highly transparent and conducting boron doped zinc oxide (ZnO:B) films grown by sol-gel method are reported. The annealing temperature is varied from 350 to 550 Degree-Sign C and doping concentration of boron is kept fixed for 0.6 at.% for all the films. At low temperature the stress in the films is compressive, which becomes tensile for the films annealed at higher temperature. A minimum resistivity of 7.9 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -4} {Omega} cm and maximum transmittance of {approx}91% are observed for the film annealed at 450 Degree-Sign C. This could be attributed to minimum stress of films, which is further evident by the evolution of A{sub 1} and defect related Raman modes without any shifting in its position. Such kind of highly transparent and conducting ZnO:B thin film could be used as window material in Dye Sensitized Solar Cell (DSSC).

ITO nanoparticles reused from ITO scraps and their applications to sputtering target for transparent conductive electrode layer

OpenAIRE

Hong, Sung-Jei; Song, Sang-Hyun; Kim, Byeong Jun; Lee, Jae-Yong; Kim, Young-Sung

2017-01-01

In this study, ITO nanoparticles (ITO-NPs) were reused from ITO target scraps to synthesize low cost ITO-NPs and to apply to make sputtering target for transparent conductive electrodes (TCEs). By controlling heat-treatment temperature as 980??C, we achieved reused ITO-NPs having Brunauer, Emmett and Teller specific surface area (BET SSA) and average particle size 8.05?m2/g and 103.8?nm, respectively. The BET SSA decreases along with increasing heat-treatment temperature. The ITO-NPs were gro...

Practice Variation in Big-4 Transparency Reports

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Girdhar, Sakshi; Klarskov Jeppesen, Kim

2018-01-01

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to examine the transparency reports published by the Big-4 public accounting firms in the UK, Germany and Denmark to understand the determinants of their content within the networks of big accounting firms. Design/methodology/approach: The study draws...... on a qualitative research approach, in which the content of transparency reports is analyzed and semi-structured interviews are conducted with key people from the Big-4 firms who are responsible for developing the transparency reports. Findings: The findings show that the content of transparency reports...... is inconsistent and the transparency reporting practice is not uniform within the Big-4 networks. Differences were found in the way in which the transparency reporting practices are coordinated globally by the respective central governing bodies of the Big-4. The content of the transparency reports...

Realization of ultrathin silver layers in highly conductive and transparent zinc tin oxide/silver/zinc tin oxide multilayer electrodes deposited at room temperature for transparent organic devices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Winkler, Thomas; Schmidt, Hans; Fluegge, Harald; Nikolayzik, Fabian; Baumann, Ihno; Schmale, Stephan; Johannes, Hans-Hermann; Rabe, Torsten [Institut fuer Hochfrequenztechnik, Technische Universitaet Braunschweig, Schleinitzstr. 22, 38106 Braunschweig (Germany); Hamwi, Sami, E-mail: sami.hamwi@ihf.tu-bs.de [Institut fuer Hochfrequenztechnik, Technische Universitaet Braunschweig, Schleinitzstr. 22, 38106 Braunschweig (Germany); Riedl, Thomas [Institute of Electronic Devices, Bergische Universitaet Wuppertal, Rainer-Gruenter Str. 21, 42119 Wuppertal (Germany); Kowalsky, Wolfgang [Institut fuer Hochfrequenztechnik, Technische Universitaet Braunschweig, Schleinitzstr. 22, 38106 Braunschweig (Germany)

2012-05-01

We report on transparent and highly conductive multilayer electrodes prepared at room temperature by RF sputtering of zinc tin oxide (ZTO) and thermal evaporation of ultrathin silver (Ag) as top contact for transparent organic light emitting diodes (TOLED). Specifically, we study the morphological, electrical and optical properties of the multilayer structure in particular of the thin Ag film. The tendency of Ag to form agglomerates over time on top of ZTO is shown by atomic force microscopy. From the optical constants derived from ellipsometric measurements we evidenced a bulk like behavior of an Ag film with a thickness of 8 nm embedded in ZTO leading to a low sheet resistance of 9 {Omega}/sq. Furthermore we verify the optical constants by simulation of an optimized ZTO/Ag/ZTO structure. As an application we present a highly efficient TOLED providing a device transmittance of > 82% in the visible part of the spectrum. The TOLED shows no damage caused by sputtering on a lighting area of 80 mm{sup 2} and exhibits efficiencies of 43 cd/A and 36 lm/W.

Effect of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation on transparent conducting oxide electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cell applications

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Singh, Hemant Kr.; Avasthi, D.K.; Aggarwal, Shruti

2015-01-01

Highlights: •The objective is to study the effect of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation on photoanode of DSSC for better efficiency. •This work presents the effect of SHI irradiation on various Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs). •Effects are studied in terms of conductivity and transmittance of TCOs. •ITO-PET gives best results in comparison to ITO and FTO for DSSC application under SHI irradiation. -- Abstract: Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) are used as electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) because of their properties such as high transmittance and low resistivity. In the present work, the effects of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation on various types of TCOs are presented. The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of SHI on TCOs. For the present study, three different types of TCOs are considered, namely, (a) FTO (fluorine-doped tin oxide, SnO 2 :F) on a Nippon glass substrate, (b) ITO (indium tin oxide, In 2 O 3 :Sn) coated on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) on a Corning glass substrate, and (c) ITO on a Corning glass substrate. These films are irradiated with 120 MeV Ag +9 ions at fluences ranging from 3.0 × 10 11 ions/cm 2 to 3.0 × 10 13 ions/cm 2 . The structural, morphological, optical and electrical properties are studied via X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), UV–Vis absorption spectroscopy and four-probe resistivity measurements, respectively. The ITO-PET electrode is found to exhibit superior conductivity and transmittance properties in comparison with the others after irradiation and, therefore, to be the most suitable for solar cell applications

Transparent Conducting Graphene Hybrid Films To Improve Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) Shielding Performance of Graphene.

Science.gov (United States)

Ma, Limin; Lu, Zhengang; Tan, Jiubin; Liu, Jian; Ding, Xuemei; Black, Nicola; Li, Tianyi; Gallop, John; Hao, Ling

2017-10-04

Conducting graphene-based hybrids have attracted considerable attention in recent years for their scientific and technological significance in many applications. In this work, conductive graphene hybrid films, consisting of a metallic network fully encapsulated between monolayer graphene and quartz-glass substrate, were fabricated and characterized for their electromagnetic interference shielding capabilities. Experimental results show that by integration with a metallic network the sheet resistance of graphene was significantly suppressed from 813.27 to 5.53 Ω/sq with an optical transmittance at 91%. Consequently, the microwave shielding effectiveness (SE) exceeded 23.60 dB at the K u -band and 13.48 dB at the K a -band. The maximum SE value was 28.91 dB at 12 GHz. Compared with the SE of pristine monolayer graphene (3.46 dB), the SE of graphene hybrid film was enhanced by 25.45 dB (99.7% energy attenuation). At 94% optical transmittance, the sheet resistance was 20.67 Ω/sq and the maximum SE value was 20.86 dB at 12 GHz. Our results show that hybrid graphene films incorporate both high conductivity and superior electromagnetic shielding comparable to existing ITO shielding modalities. The combination of high conductivity and shielding along with the materials' earth-abundant nature, and facile large-scale fabrication, make these graphene hybrid films highly attractive for transparent EMI shielding.

Synthesis of conductive semi-transparent silver films deposited by a Pneumatically-Assisted Ultrasonic Spray Pyrolysis Technique

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Zaleta-Alejandre, E.; Balderas-Xicoténcatl, R. [Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados-IPN, Departamento de Física, , Apdo. Postal 14-470, Del, Gustavo A. Madero, C.P. 07000, México, D.F. (Mexico); Arrieta, M.L. Pérez [Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas, Unidad Académica de Física, Calzada Solidaridad esq. Paseo, La Bufa s/n, C.P. 98060, Zacatecas, México (Mexico); Meza-Rocha, A.N.; Rivera-Álvarez, Z. [Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados-IPN, Departamento de Física, , Apdo. Postal 14-470, Del, Gustavo A. Madero, C.P. 07000, México, D.F. (Mexico); Falcony, C., E-mail: cfalcony@fis.cinvestav.mx [Centro de Investigación y de Estudios Avanzados-IPN, Departamento de Física, , Apdo. Postal 14-470, Del, Gustavo A. Madero, C.P. 07000, México, D.F. (Mexico)

2013-10-01

Highlights: • We deposited metallic silver films without post-deposition annealing. • The spray pyrolysis technique is of low cost and scalable for industrial applications. • We obtained deposition rate of 60 nm min{sup −1} at 300 °C. • The average resistivity was 1E−7 Ω m. • Semi-transparent silver films were obtained at 350 °C and deposition time of 45 s. -- Abstract: The synthesis and characterization of nanostructured silver films deposited on corning glass by a deposition technique called Pneumatically-Assisted Ultrasonic Spray Pyrolysis are reported. Silver nitrate and triethanolamine were used as silver precursor and reducer agent, respectively. The substrate temperatures during deposition were in the range of 300–450 °C and the deposition times from 30 to 240 s. The deposited films are polycrystalline with cubic face-centered structure, and crystalline grain size less than 30 nm. Deposition rates up to 600 Å min{sup −1} were obtained at substrate temperature as low as 300 °C. The electrical, optical, and morphological properties of these films are also reported. Semi-transparent conductive silver films were obtained at 350 °C with a deposition time of 45 s.

Synthesis of conductive semi-transparent silver films deposited by a Pneumatically-Assisted Ultrasonic Spray Pyrolysis Technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zaleta-Alejandre, E.; Balderas-Xicoténcatl, R.; Arrieta, M.L. Pérez; Meza-Rocha, A.N.; Rivera-Álvarez, Z.; Falcony, C.

2013-01-01

Highlights: • We deposited metallic silver films without post-deposition annealing. • The spray pyrolysis technique is of low cost and scalable for industrial applications. • We obtained deposition rate of 60 nm min −1 at 300 °C. • The average resistivity was 1E−7 Ω m. • Semi-transparent silver films were obtained at 350 °C and deposition time of 45 s. -- Abstract: The synthesis and characterization of nanostructured silver films deposited on corning glass by a deposition technique called Pneumatically-Assisted Ultrasonic Spray Pyrolysis are reported. Silver nitrate and triethanolamine were used as silver precursor and reducer agent, respectively. The substrate temperatures during deposition were in the range of 300–450 °C and the deposition times from 30 to 240 s. The deposited films are polycrystalline with cubic face-centered structure, and crystalline grain size less than 30 nm. Deposition rates up to 600 Å min −1 were obtained at substrate temperature as low as 300 °C. The electrical, optical, and morphological properties of these films are also reported. Semi-transparent conductive silver films were obtained at 350 °C with a deposition time of 45 s

Synthesis of graphene-like transparent conductive films on dielectric substrates using a modified filtered vacuum arc system

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lux, Helge, E-mail: lux@th-wildau.de; Schrader, Sigurd [Technical University of Applied Sciences Wildau, Hochschulring 1, Wildau 15745 (Germany); Siemroth, Peter [Arc Precision GmbH, Schwartzkopffstraße 2, Wildau 15745 (Germany); Sgarlata, Anna [Department of Physics, University of Roma - Tor Vergata, Via della Ricerca Scientifica 1, Roma 00133 (Italy); Prosposito, Paolo; Casalboni, Mauro [Department of Industrial Engineering, University of Roma - Tor Vergata, and Italian Interuniversity Consortium on Materials Science and Technology (INSTM), Research Unit Roma Tor Vergata Via del Politecnico 1, Roma 00133 (Italy); Schubert, Markus Andreas [IHP Innovations for High Performance Microelectronics, Im Technologiepark 25, Frankfurt (Oder) 15236 (Germany)

2015-05-21

Here, we present a reliable process to deposit transparent conductive films on silicon oxide, quartz, and sapphire using a solid carbon source. This layer consists of partially ordered graphene flakes with a lateral dimension of about 5 nm. The process does not require any catalytic metal and exploits a high current arc evaporation (Φ-HCA) to homogeneously deposit a layer of carbon on heated substrates. A gas atmosphere consisting of Argon or Argon/Hydrogen blend acting as a buffer influences the morphology of the growing film. scanning tunneling microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, and Raman spectra were used for a thorough characterization of the samples in order to optimize the growth parameters. The best carbon layers have a surface resistance of 5.7 × 10{sup 3} Ω{sub ◻} whereas the optical transparency of the coatings is 88% with an excellent homogeneity over areas of several cm{sup 2}. Such results are compatible with most semiconductor fabrication processes and make this method very promising for various industrial applications.

Flexibility of the Indium Tin Oxide Transparent Conductive Film Deposited Onto the Plastic Substrate

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shao-Kai Lu

2014-03-01

Full Text Available In this study, we utilize the RF magnetron sputtering system to deposit the indium tin oxide (ITO conductive transparent film with low resistivity and high light transmittance to the polyethylene tetephthalate (PET plastic substrate and measure the film’s bending property and reliability at different tensile/compressive strain bending curvatures as well as the flexibility after cycling bending. The results show that the critical curvatures corresponded to the significant increase in the resistance of the 150 nm-thick ITO film deposited onto the PET substrate under tensile and compressive stress areO 14.1 mm and 5.4 mm, respectively. By observing the film’s surface crack and morphology, we can further discover that the critical curvature of the crack generated when the film is bent is quite consistent with the critical curvature at which the conductivity property degrades, and the film can withstand a higher compressive strain bending. In addition, the resistance and adhesion behavior of the film almost is unchanged after cycling bent for 1000 times with the curvature below the critical curvature.

Silver nanowire-graphene hybrid transparent conductive electrodes for highly efficient inverted organic solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Ye, Neng; Yan, Jielin; Xie, Shuang; Kong, Yuhan; Liang, Tao; Chen, Hongzheng; Xu, Mingsheng

2017-07-01

Silver nanowires (AgNWs) and graphene are both promising candidates as a transparent conductive electrode (TCE) to replace expensive and fragile indium tin oxide (ITO) TCE. A synergistically optimized performance is expected when the advantages of AgNWs and graphene are combined. In this paper, the AgNW-graphene hybrid electrode is constructed by depositing a graphene layer on top of the network of AgNWs. Compared with the pristine AgNWs electrode, the AgNW-graphene TCE exhibits reduced sheet resistance, lower surface roughness, excellent long-term stability, and corrosion resistance in corrosive liquids. The graphene layer covering the AgNWs provides additional conduction pathways for electron transport and collection by the electrode. Benefiting from these advantages of the hybrid electrodes, we achieve a power conversion efficiency of 8.12% of inverted organic solar cells using PTB7:PC71BM as the active layer, which is compared to that of the solar cells based on standard ITO TCE but about 10% higher than that based on AgNWs TCE.

Flexural Capability of Patterned Transparent Conductive Substrate by Performing Electrical Measurements and Stress Simulations

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Chang-Chun Lee

2016-10-01

Full Text Available The suitability of stacked thin films for next-generation display technology was analyzed based on their properties and geometrical designs to evaluate the mechanical reliability of transparent conducting thin films utilized in flexural displays. In general, the high bending stress induced by various operation conditions is a major concern regarding the mechanical reliability of indium–tin–oxide (ITO films deposited on polyethylene terephthalate (PET substrates; mechanical reliability is commonly used to estimate the flexibility of displays. However, the pattern effect is rarely investigated to estimate the mechanical reliability of ITO/PET films. Thus, this study examined the flexible content of patterned ITO/PET films with two different line widths by conducting bending tests and sheet resistance measurements. Moreover, a stress–strain simulation enabled by finite element analysis was performed on the patterned ITO/PET to explore the stress impact of stacked film structures under various levels of flexural load. Results show that the design of the ITO/PET film can be applied in developing mechanically reliable flexible electronics.

Flexible transparent conductive films combining flexographic printed silver grids with CNT coating

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Mo, Lixin; Fang, Yi; Zhai, Qingbin; Li, Luhai; Ran, Jun; Yang, Li

2016-01-01

A high-performance ITO-free transparent conductive film (TCF) has been made by combining high resolution Ag grids with a carbon nanotube (CNT) coating. Ag grids printed with flexography have a 20 μm line width at a grid interval of 400 μm. The Ag grid/CNT hybrid film exhibits excellent overall performance, with a typical sheet resistance of 14.8 Ω/□ and 82.6% light transmittance at room temperature. This means a 23.98% reduction in sheet resistance and only 2.52% loss in transmittance compared to a pure Ag grid film. Analysis indicates that filling areas between the Ag grids and interconnecting the silver nanoparticles with the CNT coating are the primary reasons for the significantly improved conductivity of the hybrid film that also exhibits excellent flexibility and mechanical strength compared to an ITO film. The hybrid film may fully satisfy the requirements of different applications, e.g. use as the anode of polymer solar cells (PSCs). The J–V curve shows that the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of the PSCs using the Ag grid/CNT hybrid anode is 0.61%, which is 24.5% higher than that of the pure Ag grids with a PCE of 0.49%. Further investigations to improve the performance of the solar cells based on the printed hybrid TCFs are ongoing. (paper)

Examination of Relationship between Nuclear Transparency and Nonproliferation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ha, Jee-Min; Yim, Man-Sung; Park, Hyeon Seok; Kim, So Young [Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, Daejeon (Korea, Republic of)

2015-05-15

In this study, we define the state-level nuclear transparency as a set of the condition that shows how clearly the state's information related to peaceful nuclear power program and nuclear proliferation is revealed to the international community. For conducting expert survey on state-level nuclear transparency, the concept of nuclear transparency should be clearly defined. Based on that concept, the survey was carried out and results show that it tend to score high when nonproliferation activities happen. It means that higher transparency is positively related to nuclear proliferation. Therefore, higher nuclear transparency is positively related to nuclear nonproliferation.

Examination of Relationship between Nuclear Transparency and Nonproliferation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ha, Jee-Min; Yim, Man-Sung; Park, Hyeon Seok; Kim, So Young

2015-01-01

In this study, we define the state-level nuclear transparency as a set of the condition that shows how clearly the state's information related to peaceful nuclear power program and nuclear proliferation is revealed to the international community. For conducting expert survey on state-level nuclear transparency, the concept of nuclear transparency should be clearly defined. Based on that concept, the survey was carried out and results show that it tend to score high when nonproliferation activities happen. It means that higher transparency is positively related to nuclear proliferation. Therefore, higher nuclear transparency is positively related to nuclear nonproliferation

Large-Area Chemical Vapor Deposited MoS2 with Transparent Conducting Oxide Contacts toward Fully Transparent 2D Electronics

KAUST Repository

Dai, Zhenyu; Wang, Zhenwei; He, Xin; Zhang, Xixiang; Alshareef, Husam N.

2017-01-01

2D semiconductors are poised to revolutionize the future of electronics and photonics, much like transparent oxide conductors and semiconductors have revolutionized the display industry. Herein, these two types of materials are combined to realize

Novel Rear Side Metallization Route for Si Solar Cells Using a Transparent Conducting Adhesive: Preprint

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Schnabel, Manuel [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Klein, Talysa [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Lee, Benjamin G [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Nemeth, William M [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); LaSalvia, Vincenzo A [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Van Hest, Marinus F [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States); Stradins, Paul [National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), Golden, CO (United States)

2018-03-14

The rear side metallization of Si solar cells comes with a number of inherent losses and trade-offs: a larger metallized area fraction improves fill factor at the expense of open-circuit voltage, depositing directly on textured Si leads to low contact resistivity at the expense of short-circuit current, and some metallization processes create defects in Si. To mitigate many of these losses we have developed a novel approach for rear side metallization of Si solar cells, utilizing a transparent conducting adhesive (TCA) to metallize Si without exposing the wafer to the metal deposition process. The TCA consists of an insulating adhesive loaded with conductive microspheres. This approach leads to virtually no loss in implied open-circuit voltage upon metallization. Electrical measurements showed that contact resistivities of 3-9 ..omega.. cm2 were achieved, and an analysis of the transit resistance per microsphere showed that less than 1 ..omega.. cm2 should be achievable with higher microsphere loading of the TCA.

High performance flexible metal oxide/silver nanowire based transparent conductive films by a scalable lamination-assisted solution method

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Hua Yu

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Flexible MoO3/silver nanowire (AgNW/MoO3/TiO2/Epoxy electrodes with comparable performance to ITO were fabricated by a scalable solution-processed method with lamination assistance for transparent and conductive applications. Silver nanoparticle-based electrodes were also prepared for comparison. Using a simple spin-coating and lamination-assisted planarization method, a full solution-based approach allows preparation of AgNW-based composite electrodes at temperatures as low as 140 °C. The resulting flexible AgNW-based electrodes exhibit higher transmittance of 82% at 550 nm and lower sheet resistance about 12–15 Ω sq−1, in comparison with the values of 68% and 22–25 Ω sq−1 separately for AgNP based electrodes. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM and Atomic force microscopy (AFM reveals that the multi-stacked metal-oxide layers embedded with the AgNWs possess lower surface roughness (<15 nm. The AgNW/MoO3 composite network could enhance the charge transport and collection efficiency by broadening the lateral conduction range due to the built of an efficient charge transport network with long-sized nanowire. In consideration of the manufacturing cost, the lamination-assisted solution-processed method is cost-effective and scalable, which is desire for large-area fabrication. While in view of the materials cost and comparable performance, this AgNW-based transparent and conductive electrodes is potential as an alternative to ITO for various optoelectronic applications.

Transparent conductive ITO/Cu/ITO films prepared on flexible substrates at room temperature

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ding Xingwei; Yan Jinliang; Li Ting; Zhang Liying

2012-01-01

Transparent conductive ITO/Cu/ITO films were deposited on PET substrates by magnetron sputtering using three cathodes at room temperature. Effects of the SiO 2 buffer layer and thickness of Cu interlayer on the structural, electrical and optical properties of ITO/Cu/ITO films were investigated. The optical transmittance was affected slightly by SiO 2 buffer layer, but the electrical properties of ITO/Cu/ITO films were improved. The transmittance and resistivity of the SiO 2 /ITO/Cu/ITO films decrease as the Cu layer thickness increases. The ITO/Cu/ITO film with 5 nm Cu interlayer deposited on the 40 nm thick SiO 2 buffer layer exhibits the sheet resistance of 143 Ω/sq and transmittance of 65% at 550 nm wavelength. The optical and electrical properties of the ITO/Cu/ITO films were mainly dependent on the Cu layer.

Transparent conductive ITO/Cu/ITO films prepared on flexible substrates at room temperature

Science.gov (United States)

Ding, Xingwei; Yan, Jinliang; Li, Ting; Zhang, Liying

2012-01-01

Transparent conductive ITO/Cu/ITO films were deposited on PET substrates by magnetron sputtering using three cathodes at room temperature. Effects of the SiO2 buffer layer and thickness of Cu interlayer on the structural, electrical and optical properties of ITO/Cu/ITO films were investigated. The optical transmittance was affected slightly by SiO2 buffer layer, but the electrical properties of ITO/Cu/ITO films were improved. The transmittance and resistivity of the SiO2/ITO/Cu/ITO films decrease as the Cu layer thickness increases. The ITO/Cu/ITO film with 5 nm Cu interlayer deposited on the 40 nm thick SiO2 buffer layer exhibits the sheet resistance of 143 Ω/sq and transmittance of 65% at 550 nm wavelength. The optical and electrical properties of the ITO/Cu/ITO films were mainly dependent on the Cu layer.

Amorphous transparent conducting oxides in context: Work function survey, trends, and facile modification

Science.gov (United States)

Yeh, T. C.; Zhu, Q.; Buchholz, D. B.; Martinson, A. B.; Chang, R. P. H.; Mason, T. O.

2015-03-01

The work functions of various amorphous and crystalline transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) were measured using Kelvin probe. The films, made by pulsed laser deposition, exhibited varying work functions dependent on the composition and deposition parameters. Tin oxide showed the largest work functions of the oxides measured, while zinc oxide showed the lowest. Binary and ternary combinations of the basis TCOs showed intermediate work functions dependent on the endpoint components. Amorphous TCOs, important in OPV and other technological applications, exhibited similar work functions to their crystalline counterparts. UV/ozone treatment of TCOs temporarily increased the work function, consistent with proposed defect mechanisms associated with near-surface changes in carrier content and Fermi level. Finally, a method for facile adjustment of the work function of commercial TCOs by atomic layer deposition (ALD) capping layers was presented, illustrated by the growth of zinc oxide layers on commercial crystalline ITO films.

Transparent conductive p-type lithium-doped nickel oxide thin films deposited by pulsed plasma deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Huang, Yanwei; Zhang, Qun; Xi, Junhua; Ji, Zhenguo

2012-07-01

Transparent p-type Li0.25Ni0.75O conductive thin films were prepared on conventional glass substrates by pulsed plasma deposition. The effects of substrate temperature and oxygen pressure on structural, electrical and optical properties of the films were investigated. The electrical resistivity decreases initially and increases subsequently as the substrate temperature increases. As the oxygen pressure increases, the electrical resistivity decreases monotonically. The possible physical mechanism was discussed. And a hetero p-n junction of p-Li0.25Ni0.75O/n-SnO2:W was fabricated by depositing n-SnO2:W on top of the p-Li0.25Ni0.75O, which exhibits typical rectifying current-voltage characteristics.

Transparent conductive p-type lithium-doped nickel oxide thin films deposited by pulsed plasma deposition

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Huang Yanwei; Zhang Qun; Xi Junhua; Ji Zhenguo

2012-01-01

Transparent p-type Li 0.25 Ni 0.75 O conductive thin films were prepared on conventional glass substrates by pulsed plasma deposition. The effects of substrate temperature and oxygen pressure on structural, electrical and optical properties of the films were investigated. The electrical resistivity decreases initially and increases subsequently as the substrate temperature increases. As the oxygen pressure increases, the electrical resistivity decreases monotonically. The possible physical mechanism was discussed. And a hetero p-n junction of p-Li 0.25 Ni 0.75 O/n-SnO 2 :W was fabricated by depositing n-SnO 2 :W on top of the p-Li 0.25 Ni 0.75 O, which exhibits typical rectifying current-voltage characteristics.

Silver nanowire based flexible electrodes with improved properties: High conductivity, transparency, adhesion and low haze

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kiran Kumar, A.B.V.; Wan Bae, Chang; Piao, Longhai; Kim, Sang-Ho

2013-01-01

Graphical abstract: This graphical abstract illustrates the schematic representation of the main drawbacks and rectifications for AgNWs based transparent electrodes. - Highlights: • Films exhibited low sheet resistance and optical properties with R s ≤ 30 Ω/□ and T ≥ 90%. • We decreased haze to 2% by controlling AgNWs length, diameter, and concentration. • We achieved good adhesion for AgNWs on PET film. • There is no significant change in resistance in the bending angle from 0° to 180°, and on twisting. - Abstract: Recent work has been focusing on solution processable transparent electrodes for various applications including solar cells and displays. As well as, the research aims majorly at silver nanowires (AgNWs) to replace ITO. We enhance the transparent electrode performance as a function of optical and mechanical properties with low sheet resistance, by controlling the AgNWs accept ratios, ink composition, and processing conditions. The nanowire network of transparent films agrees with the 2D percolation law. The film transmittance values at 550 nm are coping with a reference ITO film. Sheet resistance and haze values are suitable for flexible electronic applications. We fabricate transparent flexible film using a low-cost processing technique

Silver nanowire based flexible electrodes with improved properties: High conductivity, transparency, adhesion and low haze

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Kiran Kumar, A.B.V.; Wan Bae, Chang; Piao, Longhai, E-mail: piaolh@kongju.ac.kr; Kim, Sang-Ho, E-mail: sangho1130@kongju.ac.kr

2013-08-01

Graphical abstract: This graphical abstract illustrates the schematic representation of the main drawbacks and rectifications for AgNWs based transparent electrodes. - Highlights: • Films exhibited low sheet resistance and optical properties with R{sub s} ≤ 30 Ω/□ and T ≥ 90%. • We decreased haze to 2% by controlling AgNWs length, diameter, and concentration. • We achieved good adhesion for AgNWs on PET film. • There is no significant change in resistance in the bending angle from 0° to 180°, and on twisting. - Abstract: Recent work has been focusing on solution processable transparent electrodes for various applications including solar cells and displays. As well as, the research aims majorly at silver nanowires (AgNWs) to replace ITO. We enhance the transparent electrode performance as a function of optical and mechanical properties with low sheet resistance, by controlling the AgNWs accept ratios, ink composition, and processing conditions. The nanowire network of transparent films agrees with the 2D percolation law. The film transmittance values at 550 nm are coping with a reference ITO film. Sheet resistance and haze values are suitable for flexible electronic applications. We fabricate transparent flexible film using a low-cost processing technique.

Transparent semiconducting oxides: materials and devices

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Grundmann, Marius; Frenzel, Heiko; Lajn, Alexander; Lorenz, Michael; Schein, Friedrich; von Wenckstern, Holger [Universitaet Leipzig, Institut fuer Experimentelle Physik II, Linnestr. 5, 04103 Leipzig (Germany)

2010-06-15

Transparent conductive oxides (TCOs) are a well-known material class allowing Ohmic conduction. A large free carrier concentration in the 10{sup 21} cm{sup -3} range and high conductivity (beyond 10{sup 4} S/cm) is feasible simultaneously with high transparency. Applications are manifold and include touch screens and front contacts for displays or solar cells. Transparent semiconducting oxides (TSO) are oxides with an intermediate free carrier concentration (typically 10{sup 14}-10{sup 18} cm{sup -3}) allowing the formation of depletion layers. We review recent results on TSO-based transistors and inverters. Most work has been reported on MISFETs. We show that MESFETs exhibit high performance and low voltage operation of oxide electronics. MESFET-based inverters offer superior performance compared to results reported for TSO MISFET-based circuits. Optical image of inverter based on thin film MESFETs with Mg{sub 0.003}Zn{sub 0.997}O channels (left) and experimental inverter characteristic for supply voltage of V{sub DD} = + 2.0 V (right). (Abstract Copyright [2010], Wiley Periodicals, Inc.)

Effect of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation on transparent conducting oxide electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cell applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Singh, Hemant Kr. [University School of Basic and Applied Sciences, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi (India); Avasthi, D.K. [Inter University Accelerator Center, Post Box 10502, New Delhi (India); Aggarwal, Shruti, E-mail: shruti.al@gmail.com [University School of Basic and Applied Sciences, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University, New Delhi (India)

2015-06-15

Highlights: •The objective is to study the effect of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation on photoanode of DSSC for better efficiency. •This work presents the effect of SHI irradiation on various Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs). •Effects are studied in terms of conductivity and transmittance of TCOs. •ITO-PET gives best results in comparison to ITO and FTO for DSSC application under SHI irradiation. -- Abstract: Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) are used as electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) because of their properties such as high transmittance and low resistivity. In the present work, the effects of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation on various types of TCOs are presented. The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of SHI on TCOs. For the present study, three different types of TCOs are considered, namely, (a) FTO (fluorine-doped tin oxide, SnO{sub 2}:F) on a Nippon glass substrate, (b) ITO (indium tin oxide, In{sub 2}O{sub 3}:Sn) coated on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) on a Corning glass substrate, and (c) ITO on a Corning glass substrate. These films are irradiated with 120 MeV Ag{sup +9} ions at fluences ranging from 3.0 × 10{sup 11} ions/cm{sup 2} to 3.0 × 10{sup 13} ions/cm{sup 2}. The structural, morphological, optical and electrical properties are studied via X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), UV–Vis absorption spectroscopy and four-probe resistivity measurements, respectively. The ITO-PET electrode is found to exhibit superior conductivity and transmittance properties in comparison with the others after irradiation and, therefore, to be the most suitable for solar cell applications.

Evaluation of thermodynamic and kinetic stability of P-type transparent conducting oxide, SrCu2O2 under various oxygen partial pressures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sugimoto, Takayuki; Yanagawa, Atsumi; Hashimoto, Takuya

2012-01-01

Highlights: ▶ Thermodynamic and kinetic stabilities of SrCu 2 O 2 under various P(O 2 ) was estimated. ▶ The reaction rate for decomposition decreased with decreasing temperature and P(O 2 ). ▶ The activation energy for decomposition of SrCu 2 O 2 was estimated to be 66 kJ/mol. ▶ SrCu 2 O 2 showed less stability than those of other transparent p-type semiconductors. - Abstract: Kinetic stability of transparent p-type conducting oxide, SrCu 2 O 2 , has been evaluated by using X-ray diffraction measurement and thermogravimetry. It was revealed that SrCu 2 O 2 decomposed to mixture of CuO and Sr 14 Cu 24 O 41 in air at temperatures above 300 °C. The decomposition reaction rate can be successfully explained by kinetic model assuming first-order chemical reaction. The rate constant can be suppressed with decreasing temperature and oxygen partial pressure. The activation energy for decomposition reaction of SrCu 2 O 2 calculated from Arrhenius plot was 66 kJ/mol, which was lower than those of other transparent p-type semiconductors such as CuAlO 2 and CuGaO 2 . The low decomposition temperature and activation energy for decomposition indicate that chemical stability of SrCu 2 O 2 is far lower than those of other p-type conducting oxides.

Fabrication of highly conductive graphene/ITO transparent bi-film through CVD and organic additives-free sol-gel techniques.

Science.gov (United States)

Hemasiri, Bastian Waduge Naveen Harindu; Kim, Jae-Kwan; Lee, Ji-Myon

2017-12-19

Indium tin oxide (ITO) still remains as the main candidate for high-performance optoelectronic devices, but there is a vital requirement in the development of sol-gel based synthesizing techniques with regards to green environment and higher conductivity. Graphene/ITO transparent bi-film was synthesized by a two-step process: 10 wt. % tin-doped ITO thin films were produced by an environmentally friendly aqueous sol-gel spin coating technique with economical salts of In(NO 3 ) 3 .H 2 O and SnCl 4 , without using organic additives, on surface free energy enhanced (from 53.826 to 97.698 mJm -2 ) glass substrate by oxygen plasma treatment, which facilitated void-free continuous ITO film due to high surface wetting. The chemical vapor deposited monolayer graphene was transferred onto the synthesized ITO to enhance its electrical properties and it was capable of reducing sheet resistance over 12% while preserving the bi-film surface smoother. The ITO films contain the In 2 O 3 phase only and exhibit the polycrystalline nature of cubic structure with 14.35 ± 0.5 nm crystallite size. The graphene/ITO bi-film exhibits reproducible optical transparency with 88.66% transmittance at 550 nm wavelength, and electrical conductivity with sheet resistance of 117 Ω/sq which is much lower than that of individual sol-gel derived ITO film.

Roughness-based monitoring of transparency and conductivity in boron-doped ZnO thin films prepared by spray pyrolysis

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Gaikwad, Rajendra S.; Bhande, Sambhaji S.; Mane, Rajaram S.; Pawar, Bhagwat N.; Gaikwad, Sanjay L.; Han, Sung-Hwan; Joo, Oh-Shim

2012-01-01

Graphical abstract: Display Omitted Highlights: ► We report surface roughness dependent transparency and conductivity in ZnO films. ► The surface roughness with respected to boron doping concentrations is studied. ► Boron doped and pristine Zinc oxide thin films have showed ≥95% transmittance. ► Increased carrier concentration of 9.21 × 10 21 cm −3 revealed from Hall measurement. -- Abstract: Sprayed polycrystalline ZnO and boron-doped ZnO thin films composed of spherical grains of 25–32 nm in diameters are used in roughness measurement and further correlated with the transparency and the conductivity characteristics. The surface roughness is increased up to Zn 0.98 B 0.02 O and then declined at higher boron concentrations. The sprayed ZnO films revealed ≥95% transmittance in the visible wavelength range, 1.956 × 10 −4 Ω cm electrical resistivity, 46 cm 2 /V s Hall mobility and 9.21 × 10 21 cm −3 charge carrier concentration. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy study has confirmed 0.15 eV binding energy change for Zn 2p 3/2 when 2 at% boron content is mixed without altering electro-optical properties substantially. Finally, using soft modeling importance of these textured ZnO over non-textured films for enhancing the solar cells performance is explored.

Microcrystalline silicon carbide alloys prepared with HWCVD as highly transparent and conductive window layers for thin film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Finger, F.; Astakhov, O.; Bronger, T.; Carius, R.; Chen, T.; Dasgupta, A.; Gordijn, A.; Houben, L.; Huang, Y.; Klein, S.; Luysberg, M.; Wang, H.; Xiao, L.

2009-01-01

Crystalline silicon carbide alloys have a very high potential as transparent conductive window layers in thin-film solar cells provided they can be prepared in thin-film form and at compatible deposition temperatures. The low-temperature deposition of such material in microcrystalline form (μc-Si:C:H) was realized by use of monomethylsilane precursor gas diluted in hydrogen with the Hot-Wire Chemical Vapor Deposition process. A wide range of deposition parameters has been investigated and the structural, electronic and optical properties of the μc-SiC:H thin films have been studied. The material, which is strongly n-type from unintentional doping, has been used as window layer in n-side illuminated microcrystalline silicon solar cells. High short-circuit current densities are obtained due to the high transparency of the material resulting in a maximum solar cell conversion efficiency of 9.2%.

Transparent conducting oxide clad limited area epitaxy semipolar III-nitride laser diodes

KAUST Repository

Myzaferi, A.

2016-08-11

The bottom cladding design of semipolar III-nitride laser diodes is limited by stress relaxation via misfit dislocations that form via the glide of pre-existing threading dislocations (TDs), whereas the top cladding is limited by the growth time and temperature of the p-type layers. These design limitations have individually been addressed by using limited area epitaxy (LAE) to block TD glide in n-type AlGaN bottom cladding layers and by using transparent conducting oxide (TCO) top cladding layers to reduce the growth time and temperature of the p-type layers. In addition, a TCO-based top cladding should have significantly lower resistivity than a conventional p-type (Al)GaN top cladding. In this work, LAE and indium-tin-oxide cladding layers are used simultaneously in a (202⎯⎯1) III-nitride laser structure. Lasing was achieved at 446 nm with a threshold current density of 8.5 kA/cm2 and a threshold voltage of 8.4 V.

Mixed valence transition metal 2D-oxides: Comparison between delafossite and crednerite compounds

Science.gov (United States)

Martin, Christine; Poienar, Maria

2017-08-01

Transition metal oxides offer large opportunities to study relationships between structures and properties. Indeed these compounds crystallize in numerous frameworks corresponding to different dimensionalities and, accordingly, show a huge variety of properties (as high Tc superconductivity, colossal magnetoresistivity, multiferroicity..). The control of the oxidation state of the transition metal, via the monitoring of the oxygen content, is of prime importance to understand and optimize the properties, due to the strong coupling that exists between the lattice and the charges and spins of the transition metals. In this large playground for chemists, we reinvestigated several 2D-compounds derived from delafossite structure. Considering this paper as a very short review, we report here the results obtained on CuMO2 compounds (with M = Cr, Mn or Mn+Cu) by using a combination of techniques, as X-ray, neutrons and/or electrons diffraction on poly-crystals for structural characterisations that are correlated with electrical and/or magnetic properties. The complementarity of studies is also addressed by the synthesis and characterization of single crystals in addition to poly-crystals. Moreover the comparison of the structures of similar Cr and Mn based oxides highlights the crucial role of the Jahn-Teller effect of trivalent manganese to lift the degeneracy, which is responsible of the magnetic frustration in CuCrO2.

Flexible transparent electrode

Science.gov (United States)

Demiryont, Hulya; Shannon, Kenneth C., III; Moorehead, David; Bratcher, Matthew

2011-06-01

This paper presents the properties of the EclipseTECTM transparent conductor. EclipseTECTM is a room temperature deposited nanostructured thin film coating system comprised of metal-oxide semiconductor elements. The system possesses metal-like conductivity and glass-like transparency in the visible region. These highly conductive TEC films exhibit high shielding efficiency (35dB at 1 to 100GHz). EclipseTECTM can be deposited on rigid or flexible substrates. For example, EclipseTECTM deposited on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is extremely flexible that can be rolled around a 9mm diameter cylinder with little or no reduction in electrical conductivity and that can assume pre-extension states after an applied stress is relieved. The TEC is colorless and has been tailored to have high visible transmittance which matches the eye sensitivity curve and allows the viewing of true background colors through the coating. EclipseTECTM is flexible, durable and can be tailored at the interface for applications such as electron- or hole-injecting OLED electrodes as well as electrodes in flexible displays. Tunable work function and optical design flexibility also make EclipseTECTM well-suited as a candidate for grid electrode replacement in next-generation photovoltaic cells.

Transparent conductive electrodes of mixed TiO2−x–indium tin oxide for organic photovoltaics

KAUST Repository

Lee, Kyu-Sung

2012-05-22

A transparent conductive electrode of mixed titanium dioxide (TiO2−x)–indium tin oxide (ITO) with an overall reduction in the use of indium metal is demonstrated. When used in organic photovoltaicdevices based on bulk heterojunction photoactive layer of poly (3-hexylthiophene) and [6,6]-phenyl C61 butyric acid methyl ester, a power conversion efficiency of 3.67% was obtained, a value comparable to devices having sputtered ITO electrode. Surface roughness and optical efficiency are improved when using the mixed TiO2−x–ITO electrode. The consumption of less indium allows for lower fabrication cost of such mixed thin filmelectrode.

Thin film electronic devices with conductive and transparent gas and moisture permeation barriers

Science.gov (United States)

Simpson, Lin Jay

2013-12-17

A thin film stack (100, 200) is provided for use in electronic devices such as photovoltaic devices. The stack (100, 200) may be integrated with a substrate (110) such as a light transmitting/transmissive layer. A electrical conductor layer (120, 220) is formed on a surface of the substrate (110) or device layer such as a transparent conducting (TC) material layer (120,220) with pin holes or defects (224) caused by manufacturing. The stack (100) includes a thin film (130, 230) of metal that acts as a barrier for environmental contaminants (226, 228). The metal thin film (130,230) is deposited on the conductor layer (120, 220) and formed from a self-healing metal such as a metal that forms self-terminating oxides. A permeation plug or block (236) is formed in or adjacent to the thin film (130, 230) of metal at or proximate to the pin holes (224) to block further permeation of contaminants through the pin holes (224).

Nanostructures and thin films of transparent conductive oxides studied by perturbed angular correlations

CERN Document Server

Barbosa, M B; Redondo-Cubero, A; Miranda, S M C; Simon, R; Kessler, P; Brandt, M; Henneberger, F; Nogales, E; Méndez, B; Johnston, K; Alves, E; Vianden, R; Araújo, J P; Lorenz, K; Correia, J G

2013-01-01

The versatility of perturbed angular correlations (PAC) in the study of nanostructures and thin films is demonstrated, namely for the specific cases of ZnO/Cd$_x$Zn$_{1-x}$O thin films and Ga$_2$O$_3$ powder pellets and nanowires, examples of transparent conductive oxides. PAC measurements as a function of annealing temperature were performed after implantation of $^{111m}$Cd$/^{111}$Cd (T$_{1/2}$=48$\\,$min.) and later compared to density functional theory simulations. For ZnO, the substitution of Cd probes at Zn sites was observed, as well as the formation of a probe-defect complex. The ternary Cd$_x$Zn$_{1-x}$O (x=0.16) showed good macroscopic crystal quality but revealed some clustering of local defects around the probe Cd atoms, which could not be annealed. In the Ga$_2$O$_3$ samples, the substitution of the Cd probes in the octahedral Ga-site was observed, demonstrating the potential of ion-implantation for the doping of nanowires.

Fabricating ZnO single microwire light-emitting diode with transparent conductive ITO film

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xu, Yingtian; Dai, Jun; Shi, Zhifeng; Long, Beihong; Wu, Bin; Cai, Xupu; Chu, Xianwei; Du, Guotong; Zhang, Baolin; Yin, Jingzhi

2014-01-01

In this paper, n-ZnO single microwire/p + -Si heterojunction LEDs are fabricated using the transparent conductive ITO film as an electrode. A distinct UV emission resulting from free exciton recombination in a ZnO single microwire is observed in the electroluminescence. Size difference of ZnO single microwire shows significant influence on emission efficiency. The EL spectra of n-ZnO single microwire/p-Si heterostructure exhibited relatively stronger UV emission which was compared with the EL spectra of n-ZnO single nanowire/p-Si heterostructure and n-ZnO film/p-Si heterostructure, respectively. - Highlights: • The ZnO microwires were synthesized with a vapor phase transport method. • ZnO single microwire/Si LEDs were fabricated using the ITO film as an electrode. • The EL spectra had been compared with n-ZnO film/p-Si heterostructure. • The EL spectra had been compared with n-ZnO single nanowire/p-Si heterostructure

Indium oxide-based transparent conductive films deposited by reactive sputtering using alloy targets

Science.gov (United States)

Miyazaki, Yusuke; Maruyama, Eri; Jia, Junjun; Machinaga, Hironobu; Shigesato, Yuzo

2017-04-01

High-quality transparent conductive oxide (TCO) films, Sn-doped In2O3 (ITO) and In2O3-ZnO (IZO), were successfully deposited on either synthetic silica or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates in the “transition region” by reactive dc magnetron sputtering using In-Zn and In-Sn alloy targets, respectively, with a specially designed plasma emission feedback system. The composition, crystallinity, surface morphology, and electrical and optical properties of the films were analyzed. All of the IZO films were amorphous, whereas the ITO films were polycrystalline over a wide range of deposition conditions. The minimum resistivities of the IZO and ITO films deposited on the heated PET substrates at 150 °C were 3.3 × 10-4 and 5.4 × 10-4 Ω·cm, respectively. By applying rf bias to unheated PET substrates, ITO films with a resistivity of 4.4 × 10-4 Ω·cm were deposited at a dc self-bias voltage of -60 V.

Grids on TCO's for higly transparent materials with a resistivity below 1 Ohm/sq

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Deelen, J. van; Rendering, H.; Mannetje, H.H 't; Hovestad, A.

2011-01-01

Various transparent conducting materials are compared based on their transparency versus sheet resistance characteristics. At present, transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) are still superior in performance compared to various recent alternatives and can only be surpassed by the combination of TCOs

Control of thickness uniformity and grain size in graphene films for transparent conductive electrodes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wu Wei; Yu Qingkai; Pei, Shin-Shem; Peng Peng; Bao Jiming; Liu Zhihong

2012-01-01

Large-scale and transferable graphene films grown on metal substrates by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) still hold great promise for future nanotechnology. To realize the promise, one of the key issues is to further improve the quality of graphene, e.g., uniform thickness, large grain size, and low defects. Here we grow graphene films on Cu foils by CVD at ambient pressure, and study the graphene nucleation and growth processes under different concentrations of carbon precursor. On the basis of the results, we develop a two-step ambient pressure CVD process to synthesize continuous single-layer graphene films with large grain size (up to hundreds of square micrometers). Scanning electron microscopy and Raman spectroscopy characterizations confirm the film thickness and uniformity. The transferred graphene films on cover glass slips show high electrical conductivity and high optical transmittance that make them suitable as transparent conductive electrodes. The growth mechanism of CVD graphene on Cu is also discussed, and a growth model has been proposed. Our results provide important guidance toward the synthesis of high quality uniform graphene films, and could offer a great driving force for graphene based applications. (paper)

Improved transparent-conducting properties in N{sub 2{sup -}} and H{sub 2{sup -}} annealed GaZnO thin films grown on glass substrates

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lee, Youngmin; Kim, Deukyoung; Lee, Sejoon [Dongguk University, Seoul (Korea, Republic of)

2012-01-15

The effects of N{sub 2{sup -}} and H{sub 2{sup -}} annealing on the transparent-conducting properties of Ga-doped ZnO (GaZnO) were examined. The as-grown GaZnO thin film, which was deposited on a soda-lime glass substrate by r.f. magnetron sputtering, exhibited moderate transparent-conducting properties: a resistivity of {approx}10{sup 0} {Omega}{center_dot}cm and an optical transmittance of {approx}86%. After annealing in N{sub 2} or H{sub 2}, the GaZnO samples showed great improvements in both the electrical and the optical properties. Particularly, in the H{sub 2}-annealed sample, a dramatic decrease in the resistivity (7 x 10{sup -4} {Omega}{center_dot}cm) with a considerable increase in the carrier concentration (4.22 x 10{sup 21} cm{sup -3}) was observed. This is attributed to both an increase in the number of Ga-O bonds and a reduction in the number of chemisorbed oxygen atoms though H{sub 2} annealing. The sample revealed an enhanced optical transmittance ({approx}91%), which comes from the Burstein-Moss effect. Namely, a blue-shift of the optical absorption edge, which results from the increased carrier concentration, was observed in the H{sub 2}-annealed sample. The results suggest that hydrogen annealing can help improve the transparent conducting properties of GaZnO via a modification of the electrochemical bonding structures.

MoOx modified ZnGaO based transparent conducting oxides

Science.gov (United States)

Dutta, Titas; Gupta, P.; Bhosle, V.; Narayan, J.

2009-03-01

We report here the growth of high work function bilayered structures of thin MoOx (2.0MoOx layer, molybdenum exists in Mo4+, Mo5+, and Mo6+ oxidation states, and the ratio of (Mo4++Mo5+) to Mo6+ was determined to be ˜2:1. The bilayer films showed good optical transparency (≥80%) and low resistivity of ˜10-4 Ω cm. Different transport behavior of the MoOx/ZnGa0.05O films grown at different Ts (substrate temperature) was observed in temperature-dependent resistivity measurements. The bilayer film at higher Ts showed metallic conductivity behavior down to 113 K. Moreover, a blueshift of the absorption edge in the transmission spectrum was observed with the increase in Ts, indicating an increase in the carrier concentration. It was observed that the ZnGa0.05O films with ultrathin MoOx (˜1-2 nanometers) overlayer showed a higher work function (varying from 4.7 to 5.1 eV) as compared to the single layer ZnGa0.05O film work function (˜4.4 eV). A correlation between the surface work function and MoOx layer thickness is observed. The higher work function of the MoOx overlayer is envisaged to improve the transport of the carriers across the heterojunction in a solid state device, thus resulting an increase in device efficiency.

Transparent conducting properties of anatase Ti0.94Nb0.06O2 polycrystalline films on glass substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Hitosugi, T.; Ueda, A.; Nakao, S.; Yamada, N.; Furubayashi, Y.; Hirose, Y.; Konuma, S.; Shimada, T.; Hasegawa, T.

2008-01-01

We report on transparent conducting properties of anatase Ti 0.94 Nb 0.06 O 2 (TNO) polycrystalline films on glass substrate, and discuss the role of grain crystallinity and grain boundary on resistivity. Thin films of TNO were deposited using pulsed laser deposition at substrate temperature ranging from room temperature to 350 deg. C, with subsequent H 2 -annealing at 500 deg. C. Polycrystalline TNO films showed resistivity of 4.5 x 10 -4 Ω cm and 1.5 x 10 -3 Ω cm for films prepared at substrate temperature of room temperature and 250 deg. C, respectively. X-ray diffraction measurements and transmission electron microscopy reveal that grain crystallinity and grain boundary play key roles in conductive films

Length-controlled few-walled carbon nanotubes and their effect on the electrical property of flexible transparent conductive films

Science.gov (United States)

Lee, Byeong-Joo; Shin, Eui-Chul; Jeong, Goo-Hwan

2012-06-01

We investigated the effect of the length of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) on the electrical property of CNT-based flexible, transparent, and conductive films (TCFs). We grew vertically aligned CNTs with controlled lengths, dispersed them in ethanol by ultrasonication, and spray coated them onto polyethylene terephthalate (PET) sheets. We focused on the variation in the sheet resistance and transmittance of the above-mentioned films as a function of the CNT length, and we found that the optimum CNT length was 200 μm. We concluded that the CNT length should be carefully optimized because a shorter tube affords the advantage of efficient dispersion, while a longer tube helps in reducing the number of contact points between tubes along the electrical conduction path.

Metal nanogrids, nanowires, and nanofibers for transparent electrodes

KAUST Repository

Hu, Liangbing; Wu, Hui; Cui, Yi

2011-01-01

Metals possess the highest conductivity among all room-temperature materials; however, ultrathin metal films demonstrate decent optical transparency but poor sheet conductance due to electron scattering from the surface and grain boundaries. This article discusses engineered metal nanostructures in the form of nanogrids, nanowires, or continuous nanofibers as efficient transparent and conductive electrodes. Metal nanogrids are discussed, as they represent an excellent platform for understanding the fundamental science. Progress toward low-cost, nano-ink-based printed silver nanowire electrodes, including silver nanowire synthesis, film fabrication, wire-wire junction resistance, optoelectronic properties, and stability, are also discussed. Another important factor for low-cost application is to use earth-abundant materials. Copper-based nanowires and nanofibers are discussed in this context. Examples of device integrations of these materials are also given. Such metal nanostructure-based transparent electrodes are particularly attractive for solar cell applications. © 2011 Materials Research Society.

Metal nanogrids, nanowires, and nanofibers for transparent electrodes

KAUST Repository

Hu, Liangbing

2011-10-01

Metals possess the highest conductivity among all room-temperature materials; however, ultrathin metal films demonstrate decent optical transparency but poor sheet conductance due to electron scattering from the surface and grain boundaries. This article discusses engineered metal nanostructures in the form of nanogrids, nanowires, or continuous nanofibers as efficient transparent and conductive electrodes. Metal nanogrids are discussed, as they represent an excellent platform for understanding the fundamental science. Progress toward low-cost, nano-ink-based printed silver nanowire electrodes, including silver nanowire synthesis, film fabrication, wire-wire junction resistance, optoelectronic properties, and stability, are also discussed. Another important factor for low-cost application is to use earth-abundant materials. Copper-based nanowires and nanofibers are discussed in this context. Examples of device integrations of these materials are also given. Such metal nanostructure-based transparent electrodes are particularly attractive for solar cell applications. © 2011 Materials Research Society.

Carbon nanotube-graphene composite film as transparent conductive electrode for GaN-based light-emitting diodes

KAUST Repository

Kang, Chun Hong

2016-08-23

Transparent conductive electrodes (TCE) made of carbon nanotube (CNT) and graphene composite for GaN-based light emitting diodes (LED) are presented. The TCE with 533-Ω/□ sheet resistance and 88% transmittance were obtained when chemical-vapor-deposition grown graphene was fused across CNT networks. With an additional 2-nm thin NiOx interlayer between the TCE and top p-GaN layer of the LED, the forward voltage was reduced to 5.12 V at 20-mA injection current. Four-fold improvement in terms of light output power was observed. The improvement can be ascribed to the enhanced lateral current spreading across the hybrid CNT-graphene TCE before injection into the p-GaN layer.

Carbon nanotube-graphene composite film as transparent conductive electrode for GaN-based light-emitting diodes

KAUST Repository

Kang, Chun Hong; Shen, Chao; M. Saheed, M. Shuaib; Mohamed, Norani Muti; Ng, Tien Khee; Ooi, Boon S.; Burhanudin, Zainal Arif

2016-01-01

Transparent conductive electrodes (TCE) made of carbon nanotube (CNT) and graphene composite for GaN-based light emitting diodes (LED) are presented. The TCE with 533-Ω/□ sheet resistance and 88% transmittance were obtained when chemical-vapor-deposition grown graphene was fused across CNT networks. With an additional 2-nm thin NiOx interlayer between the TCE and top p-GaN layer of the LED, the forward voltage was reduced to 5.12 V at 20-mA injection current. Four-fold improvement in terms of light output power was observed. The improvement can be ascribed to the enhanced lateral current spreading across the hybrid CNT-graphene TCE before injection into the p-GaN layer.

Flexible Transparent Supercapacitors Based on Hierarchical Nanocomposite Films.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Fanhong; Wan, Pengbo; Xu, Haijun; Sun, Xiaoming

2017-05-31

Flexible transparent electronic devices have recently gained immense popularity in smart wearable electronics and touch screen devices, which accelerates the development of the portable power sources with reliable flexibility, robust transparency and integration to couple these electronic devices. For potentially coupled as energy storage modules in various flexible, transparent and portable electronics, the flexible transparent supercapacitors are developed and assembled from hierarchical nanocomposite films of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and aligned polyaniline (PANI) nanoarrays upon their synergistic advantages. The nanocomposite films are fabricated from in situ PANI nanoarrays preparation in a blended solution of aniline monomers and rGO onto the flexible, transparent, and stably conducting film (FTCF) substrate, which is obtained by coating silver nanowires (Ag NWs) layer with Meyer rod and then coating of rGO layer on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate. Optimization of the transparency, the specific capacitance, and the flexibility resulted in the obtained all-solid state nanocomposite supercapacitors exhibiting enhanced capacitance performance, good cycling stability, excellent flexibility, and superior transparency. It provides promising application prospects for exploiting flexible, low-cost, transparent, and high-performance energy storage devices to be coupled into various flexible, transparent, and wearable electronic devices.

Transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Flyverbom, Mikkel; Albu, Oana Brindusa

2017-01-01

Transparency is an increasingly prominent research topic in many scholarly disciplines and offers valuable insights for organizational communication. This entry provides an overview of the historical background and identifies some themes that presently inform the transparency literature. The entry...... then outlines the most important dimensions of the concept of transparency by highlighting two paradigmatic positions underpinning contemporary research in this area: namely, informational approaches that focus on the sharing of information and the perceived quality of that information and social process...... orientations that explore the dynamics of transparency in organizational settings. The entry highlights emergent methodological and conceptual insights concerning transparency as a dynamic and paradoxical social process with performative characteristics – an approach that remains underexplored....

Preparation of smooth, flexible and stable silver nanowires- polyurethane composite transparent conductive films by transfer method

Science.gov (United States)

Bai, Shengchi; Wang, Haifeng; Yang, Hui; Zhang, He; Guo, Xingzhong

2018-02-01

Silver nanowires (AgNWs)-polyurethane (PU) composite transparent conductive films were fabricated via transfer method using AgNWs conductive inks and polyurethane as starting materials, and the effects of post-treatments including heat treatment, NaCl solution bath and HCl solution bath for AgNWs film on the sheet resistance and transmittance of the composite films were respectively investigated in detail. AgNWs networks are uniformly embedded in the PU layer to improve the adhesion and reduce the surface roughness of AgNWs-PU composite films. Heat treatment can melt and weld the nanowires, and NaCl and HCl solution baths promote the dissolution and re-deposition of silver and the dissolving of the polymer, both which form conduction pathways and improve contact of AgNWs for reducing the sheet resistance. Smooth and flexible AgNWs-PU composite film with a transmittance of 85% and a sheet resistance of 15 Ω · sq‑1 is obtained after treated in 0.5 wt% HCl solution bath for 60 s, and the optoelectronic properties of the resultant composite film can maintain after 1000 cycles of bending and 100 days.

Rhombohedral polytypes of the layered honeycomb delafossites with optical brilliance in the visible.

Science.gov (United States)

Roudebush, John H; Sahasrabudhe, Girija; Bergman, Susanna L; Cava, R J

2015-04-06

We report the synthesis of the Delafossite honeycomb compounds Cu3Ni2SbO6 and Cu3Co2SbO6 via a copper topotactic reaction from the layered α-NaFeO2-like precursors Na3Ni2SbO6 and Na3Co2SbO6. The low-temperature exchange reaction exclusively produces the rhombahedral 3R polytype subcell, whereas only the hexagonal 2H polytype subcell has been made by conventional synthesis. The thus-synthesized 3R variants are visually striking; they are bright lime-green (Ni variant) and terracotta-orange (Co variant), while both of the conventionally synthesized 2H variants have a burnt-red color. The new structures are characterized by powder X-ray diffraction and Rietveld analysis as well as magnetic susceptibility, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), and diffuse-reflectance optical spectroscopy. Using thermogravimetric analysis, we identify a second order 3R → 2H phase transition as well as a first-order structural transition associated with rearrangement of the honeycomb stacking layers. The optical absorbance spectra of the samples show discrete edges that correlate well to their visual colors. Exposing Cu3Ni2SbO6 to O2 and heat causes the sample to change color. XPS confirms the presence of Cu(2+) in these samples, which implies that the difference in color between the polytypes is due to oxygen intercalation resulting from their different synthetic routes.

Remote Monitoring Transparency Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sukhoruchkin, V.K.; Shmelev, V.M.; Roumiantsev, A.N.

1996-01-01

The objective of the Remote Monitoring Transparency Program is to evaluate and demonstrate the use of remote monitoring technologies to advance nonproliferation and transparency efforts that are currently being developed by Russia and the United States without compromising the national security to the participating parties. Under a lab-to-lab transparency contract between Sandia National Laboratories (SNL) and the Kurchatov Institute (KI RRC), the Kurchatov Institute will analyze technical and procedural aspects of the application of remote monitoring as a transparency measure to monitor inventories of direct- use HEU and plutonium (e.g., material recovered from dismantled nuclear weapons). A goal of this program is to assist a broad range of political and technical experts in learning more about remote monitoring technologies that could be used to implement nonproliferation, arms control, and other security and confidence building measures. Specifically, this program will: (1) begin integrating Russian technologies into remote monitoring systems; (2) develop remote monitoring procedures that will assist in the application of remote monitoring techniques to monitor inventories of HEU and Pu from dismantled nuclear weapons; and (3) conduct a workshop to review remote monitoring fundamentals, demonstrate an integrated US/Russian remote monitoring system, and discuss the impacts that remote monitoring will have on the national security of participating countries

Transparent conducting AZO and ITO films produced by pulsed laser ablation at 355 nm

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Thestrup, B.; Schou, Jørgen

1999-01-01

Thin films of aluminium-doped zinc oxide (AZO) and indium tin oxide (ITO) were deposited on glass substrates by laser ablation in an oxygen environment. The electrical and optical properties of films grown at various oxygen pressures were compared. With no substrate heating, highly transparent...... and conducting films were obtained with oxygen pressures between 15 and 23 mTorr for both materials. We obtained a specific resistivity of 1.8 x 10(-3) Omega cm for AZO and 1.1 x 10(-3) Omega cm for ITO. By heating the substrate to 160 degrees C or 200 degrees C, the resistivity was further reduced to 1.1 x 10......(-3) Omega cm for AZO and 3.9 x 10(-4) Omega cm for ITO. The average transmission of visible light (450-750 MI) was between 82% and 98% in most cases. The results suggest that AZO is a promising alternative to ITO....

High rate deposition of transparent conducting oxide thin films by vacuum arc plasma evaporation

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Minami, Tadatsugu; Ida, Satoshi; Miyata, Toshihiro

2002-01-01

Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) thin films have been deposited at a high rate above 370 nm/min by vacuum arc plasma evaporation (VAPE) using sintered oxide fragments as the source material. It was found that the deposition rate of TCO films was strongly dependent on the deposition pressure, whereas the obtained electrical properties were relatively independent of the pressure. Resistivities of 5.6x10 -4 and 2.3x10 -4 Ω·cm and an average transmittance above 80% (with substrate included) in the visible range were obtained in Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) thin films deposited at 100 and 350 deg. C, respectively. In addition, a resistivity as low as 1.4x10 -4 Ω·cm and an average transmittance above 80% were also obtained in indium-tin-oxide (ITO) films deposited at 300 deg. C. The deposited TCO films exhibited uniform distributions of resistivity and thickness on large area substrates

High rate deposition of transparent conducting oxide thin films by vacuum arc plasma evaporation

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Minami, Tadatsugu; Ida, Satoshi; Miyata, Toshihiro

2002-09-02

Transparent conducting oxide (TCO) thin films have been deposited at a high rate above 370 nm/min by vacuum arc plasma evaporation (VAPE) using sintered oxide fragments as the source material. It was found that the deposition rate of TCO films was strongly dependent on the deposition pressure, whereas the obtained electrical properties were relatively independent of the pressure. Resistivities of 5.6x10{sup -4} and 2.3x10{sup -4} {omega}{center_dot}cm and an average transmittance above 80% (with substrate included) in the visible range were obtained in Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) thin films deposited at 100 and 350 deg. C, respectively. In addition, a resistivity as low as 1.4x10{sup -4} {omega}{center_dot}cm and an average transmittance above 80% were also obtained in indium-tin-oxide (ITO) films deposited at 300 deg. C. The deposited TCO films exhibited uniform distributions of resistivity and thickness on large area substrates.

TRANSPARENT COATINGS FOR SOLAR CELLS RESEARCH

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Glatkowski, P. J.; Landis, D. A.

2013-04-16

Todays solar cells are fabricated using metal oxide based transparent conductive coatings (TCC) or metal wires with optoelectronic performance exceeding that currently possible with Carbon Nanotube (CNT) based TCCs. The motivation for replacing current TCC is their inherent brittleness, high deposition cost, and high deposition temperatures; leading to reduced performance on thin substrates. With improved processing, application and characterization techniques Nanofiber and/or CNT based TCCs can overcome these shortcomings while offering the ability to be applied in atmospheric conditions using low cost coating processes At todays level of development, CNT based TCC are nearing commercial use in touch screens, some types of information displays (i.e. electronic paper), and certain military applications. However, the resistivity and transparency requirements for use in current commercial solar cells are more stringent than in many of these applications. Therefore, significant research on fundamental nanotube composition, dispersion and deposition are required to reach the required performance commanded by photovoltaic devices. The objective of this project was to research and develop transparent conductive coatings based on novel nanomaterial composite coatings, which comprise nanotubes, nanofibers, and other nanostructured materials along with binder materials. One objective was to show that these new nanomaterials perform at an electrical resistivity and optical transparency suitable for use in solar cells and other energy-related applications. A second objective was to generate new structures and chemistries with improved resistivity and transparency performance. The materials also included the binders and surface treatments that facilitate the utility of the electrically conductive portion of these composites in solar photovoltaic devices. Performance enhancement venues included: CNT purification and metallic tube separation techniques, chemical doping, CNT

Influence of transparent conductive oxides on passivation of a-Si:H/c-Si heterojunctions as studied by atomic layer deposited Al-doped ZnO

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Macco, B.; Deligiannis, D.; Smit, S.; Swaaij, van R.A.C.M.M.; Zeman, M.; Kessels, W.M.M.

2014-01-01

In silicon heterojunction solar cells, the main opportunities for efficiency gain lie in improvements of the front-contact layers. Therefore, the effect of transparent conductive oxides (TCOs) on the a-Si:H passivation performance has been investigated for Al-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Al) layers made by

Structural and electrical properties of sputtering power and gas pressure on Ti-dope In2O3 transparent conductive films by RF magnetron sputtering

Science.gov (United States)

Chaoumead, Accarat; Joo, Bong-Hyun; Kwak, Dong-Joo; Sung, Youl-Moon

2013-06-01

Transparent conductive titanium-doped indium oxide (ITiO) films were deposited on Corning glass substrates by RF magnetron sputtering method. The effects of RF sputtering power and Ar gas pressure on the structural and electrical properties of the films were investigated experimentally, using a 2.5 wt% TiO2-doped In2O3 target. The deposition rate was in the range of around 20-60 nm/min under the experimental conditions of 5-20 mTorr of gas pressure and 220-350 W of RF power. The lowest resistivity of 1.2 × 10-4 Ω cm, the average optical transmittance of 75%, the high hall mobility of 47.03 cm2/V s and the relatively low carrier concentration of 1.15E+21 cm-3 were obtained for the ITiO film, prepared at RF power of 300 W and Ar gas pressure of 15 mTorr. This resistivity of 1.2 × 10-4 Ω cm is low enough as a transparent conducting layer in various electro-optical devices and it is comparable with that of ITO or ZnO:Al conducting layer.

Solution-Processable transparent conducting electrodes via the self-assembly of silver nanowires for organic photovoltaic devices.

Science.gov (United States)

Tugba Camic, B; Jeong Shin, Hee; Hasan Aslan, M; Basarir, Fevzihan; Choi, Hyosung

2018-02-15

Solution-processed transparent conducting electrodes (TCEs) were fabricated via the self-assembly deposition of silver nanowires (Ag NWs). Glass substrates modified with (3-aminopropyl)triethoxysilane (APTES) and (3-mercaptopropyl)trimethoxysilane (MPTES) were coated with Ag NWs for various deposition times, leading to three different Ag NWs samples (APTES-Ag NWs (PVP), MPTES-Ag NWs (PVP), and APTES-Ag NWs (COOH)). Controlling the deposition time produced Ag NWs monolayer thin films with different optical transmittance and sheet resistance. Post-annealing treatment improved their electrical conductivity. The Ag NWs films were successfully characterized using UV-Vis spectroscopy, field emission scanning electron microscopy, optical microscopy and four-point probe. Three Ag NWs films exhibited low sheet resistance of 4-19Ω/sq and high optical transmittance of 65-81% (at 550nm), which are comparable to those of commercial ITO electrode. We fabricated an organic photovoltaic device by using Ag NWs as the anode instead of ITO electrode, and optimized device with Ag NWs exhibited power conversion efficiency of 1.72%. Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

An epitaxial transparent conducting perovskite oxide: double-doped SrTiO3

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Ravichandran, Jayakanth; Siemons, W.; Heijmerikx, Herman; Huijben, Mark; Majumdar, Arun; Ramesh, Ramamoorthy

2010-01-01

Epitaxial thin films of strontium titanate doped with different concentrations of lanthanum and oxygen vacancies were grown on LSAT substrates by pulsed laser deposition technique. Films grown with 5−15% La doping and a critical growth pressure of 1−10 mTorr showed high transparency (>70−95%) in the

Transparent conducting thin films by co-sputtering of ZnO-ITO targets

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Carreras, Paz; Antony, Aldrin; Roldan, Ruben; Nos, Oriol; Frigeri, Paolo Antonio; Asensi, Jose Miguel; Bertomeu, Joan [Grup d' Energia Solar, Universitat de Barcelona (Spain)

2010-04-15

Transparent and conductive Zn-In-Sn-O (ZITO) amorphous thin films have been deposited at room temperature by the rf magnetron co-sputtering of ITO and ZnO targets. Co-sputtering gives the possibility to deposit multicomponent oxide thin films with different compositions by varying the power to one of the targets. In order to make ZITO films with different Zn content, a constant rf power of 50 W was used for the ITO target, where as the rf power to ZnO target was varied from 25 W to 150 W. The as deposited films showed an increase in Zn content ratio from 17 to 67% as the power to ZnO target was increased from 25 to 150 W. The structural, electrical and optical properties of the as deposited films are reported. The films showed an average transmittance over 80% in the visible wavelength range. The electrical resistivity and optical band gap of the ZITO films were found to depend on the Zn content in the film. The ZITO films deposited at room temperature with lower Zn content ratios showed better optical transmission and electrical properties compared to ITO film. (copyright 2010 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH and Co. KGaA, Weinheim) (orig.)

Transparent resistive switching memory using aluminum oxide on a flexible substrate

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yeom, Seung-Won; Kim, Tan-Young; Ha, Hyeon Jun; Ju, Byeong-Kwon; Shin, Sang-Chul; Shim, Jae Won; Lee, Yun-Hi

2016-01-01

Resistive switching memory (ReRAM) has attracted much attention in recent times owing to its fast switching, simple structure, and non-volatility. Flexible and transparent electronic devices have also attracted considerable attention. We therefore fabricated an Al 2 O 3 -based ReRAM with transparent indium-zinc-oxide (IZO) electrodes on a flexible substrate. The device transmittance was found to be higher than 80% in the visible region (400–800 nm). Bended states (radius = 10 mm) of the device also did not affect the memory performance because of the flexibility of the two transparent IZO electrodes and the thin Al 2 O 3 layer. The conduction mechanism of the resistive switching of our device was explained by ohmic conduction and a Poole–Frenkel emission model. The conduction mechanism was proved by oxygen vacancies in the Al 2 O 3 layer, as analyzed by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. These results encourage the application of ReRAM in flexible and transparent electronic devices. (letter)

Transparent resistive switching memory using aluminum oxide on a flexible substrate

Science.gov (United States)

Yeom, Seung-Won; Shin, Sang-Chul; Kim, Tan-Young; Ha, Hyeon Jun; Lee, Yun-Hi; Shim, Jae Won; Ju, Byeong-Kwon

2016-02-01

Resistive switching memory (ReRAM) has attracted much attention in recent times owing to its fast switching, simple structure, and non-volatility. Flexible and transparent electronic devices have also attracted considerable attention. We therefore fabricated an Al2O3-based ReRAM with transparent indium-zinc-oxide (IZO) electrodes on a flexible substrate. The device transmittance was found to be higher than 80% in the visible region (400-800 nm). Bended states (radius = 10 mm) of the device also did not affect the memory performance because of the flexibility of the two transparent IZO electrodes and the thin Al2O3 layer. The conduction mechanism of the resistive switching of our device was explained by ohmic conduction and a Poole-Frenkel emission model. The conduction mechanism was proved by oxygen vacancies in the Al2O3 layer, as analyzed by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy analysis. These results encourage the application of ReRAM in flexible and transparent electronic devices.

Organizational Transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Albu, Oana Brindusa; Flyverbom, Mikkel

2018-01-01

with the sharing of information and the perceived quality of the information shared. This narrow focus on information and quality, however, overlooks the dynamics of organizational transparency. To provide a more structured conceptualization of organizational transparency, this article unpacks the assumptions......Transparency is an increasingly prominent area of research that offers valuable insights for organizational studies. However, conceptualizations of transparency are rarely subject to critical scrutiny and thus their relevance remains unclear. In most accounts, transparency is associated...... that shape the extant literature, with a focus on three dimensions: conceptualizations, conditions, and consequences. The contribution of the study is twofold: (a) On a conceptual level, we provide a framework that articulates two paradigmatic positions underpinning discussions of transparency, verifiability...

Study on the optical and electrical properties of tetracyanoethylene doped bilayer graphene stack for transparent conducting electrodes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Limbu, Tej B.; Barrionuevo, Danilo; Katiyar, Ram S.; Morell, Gerardo; Mendoza, Frank; Carpena, Jennifer; Maruyama, Benji; Weiner, Brad R.

2016-01-01

We report the optical and electrical properties of chemically-doped bilayer graphene stack by tetracyanoethylene, a strong electron acceptor. The Tetracyanoethylene doping on the bilayer graphene via charge transfer was confirmed by Raman spectroscopy and Infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy. Doped graphene shows a significant increase in the sheet carrier concentration of up to 1.520 × 10"1"3 cm"−"2 with a concomitant reduction of the sheet resistance down to 414.1 Ω/sq. The high optical transmittance (ca. 84%) in the visible region in combination with the low sheet resistance of the Tetracyanoethylene-doped bilayer graphene stack opens up the possibility of making transparent conducting electrodes for practical applications.

Effect of annealing over optoelectronic properties of graphene based transparent electrodes

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Yadav, Shriniwas, E-mail: sniwas89@gmail.com; Kaur, Inderpreet, E-mail: inderpreety@yahoo.co.in [Academy of Scientific and Innovative Research- Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (AcSIR-CSIO), Sector-30C, Chandigarh (India); Council of Scientific and Industrial Research- Central Scientific Instruments Organisation (CSIR-CSIO), Sector-30C, Chandigarh (India)

2016-04-13

Graphene, an atom–thick two dimensional graphitic material have led various fundamental breakthroughs in the field of science and technology. Due to their exceptional optical, physical and electrical properties, graphene based transparent electrodes have shown several applications in organic light emitting diodes, solar cells and thin film transistors. Here, we are presenting effect of annealing over optoelectronic properties of graphene based transparent electrodes. Graphene based transparent electrodes have been prepared by wet chemical approach over glass substrates. After fabrication, these electrodes tested for optical transmittance in visible region. Sheet resistance was measured using four probe method. Effect of thermal annealing at 200 °C was studied over optical and electrical performance of these electrodes. Optoelectronic performance was judged from ratio of direct current conductivity to optical conductivity (σ{sub dc}/σ{sub opt}) as a figure of merit for transparent conductors. The fabricated electrodes display good optical and electrical properties. Such electrodes can be alternatives for doped metal oxide based transparent electrodes.

Effect of annealing over optoelectronic properties of graphene based transparent electrodes

Science.gov (United States)

Yadav, Shriniwas; Kaur, Inderpreet

2016-04-01

Graphene, an atom-thick two dimensional graphitic material have led various fundamental breakthroughs in the field of science and technology. Due to their exceptional optical, physical and electrical properties, graphene based transparent electrodes have shown several applications in organic light emitting diodes, solar cells and thin film transistors. Here, we are presenting effect of annealing over optoelectronic properties of graphene based transparent electrodes. Graphene based transparent electrodes have been prepared by wet chemical approach over glass substrates. After fabrication, these electrodes tested for optical transmittance in visible region. Sheet resistance was measured using four probe method. Effect of thermal annealing at 200 °C was studied over optical and electrical performance of these electrodes. Optoelectronic performance was judged from ratio of direct current conductivity to optical conductivity (σdc/σopt) as a figure of merit for transparent conductors. The fabricated electrodes display good optical and electrical properties. Such electrodes can be alternatives for doped metal oxide based transparent electrodes.

76 FR 1180 - FDA Transparency Initiative: Improving Transparency to Regulated Industry

Science.gov (United States)

2011-01-07

...] FDA Transparency Initiative: Improving Transparency to Regulated Industry AGENCY: Food and Drug... the Transparency Initiative, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is announcing the availability of a report entitled ``FDA Transparency Initiative: Improving Transparency to Regulated Industry.'' The...

RF-superimposed DC and pulsed DC sputtering for deposition of transparent conductive oxides

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Stowell, Michael; Mueller, Joachim; Ruske, Manfred; Lutz, Mark; Linz, Thomas

2007-01-01

Transparent conductive oxide films are widely used materials for electronic applications such as flat panel displays and solar cells. The superposition of DC and pulsed DC power by a certain fraction of RF power was applied to deposit indium tin oxide films. This technique allows an additional tuning of different parameters relevant to film growth, and yields high quality films even under kinetically limited conditions. A long-term stable RF/DC process could be realized by using different combinations of standard power supply components, which includes a fully reliable arc handling system for both the RF and DC generators. The effectiveness of the arc handling system is illustrated by the current and voltage behavior recorded for actual arcing events. The resistivity of indium tin oxide films is strongly influenced by the respective sputtering mode. The best resistivity values of 145-148 μΩ cm were obtained by RF-superimposed pulsed DC sputtering at a pulse frequency between 100 and 200 kHz and a substrate temperature as low as 140 deg. C. In addition, the films were extremely smooth with a surface roughness of 1-2.5 nm

Assembly and benign step-by-step post-treatment of oppositely charged reduced graphene oxides for transparent conductive thin films with multiple applications

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Jiayi; He, Junhui

2012-05-01

We report a new approach for the fabrication of flexible and transparent conducting thin films via the layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly of oppositely charged reduced graphene oxide (RGO) and the benign step-by-step post-treatment on substrates with a low glass-transition temperature, such as glass and poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET). The RGO dispersions and films were characterized by means of atomic force microscopy, UV-visible absorption spectrophotometery, Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, contact angle/interface systems and a four-point probe. It was found that the graphene thin films exhibited a significant increase in electrical conductivity after the step-by-step post-treatments. The graphene thin film on the PET substrate had a good conductivity retainability after multiple cycles (30 cycles) of excessively bending (bending angle: 180°), while tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) thin films on PET showed a significant decrease in electrical conductivity. In addition, the graphene thin film had a smooth surface with tunable wettability.We report a new approach for the fabrication of flexible and transparent conducting thin films via the layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly of oppositely charged reduced graphene oxide (RGO) and the benign step-by-step post-treatment on substrates with a low glass-transition temperature, such as glass and poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET). The RGO dispersions and films were characterized by means of atomic force microscopy, UV-visible absorption spectrophotometery, Raman spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy, contact angle/interface systems and a four-point probe. It was found that the graphene thin films exhibited a significant increase in electrical conductivity after the step-by-step post-treatments. The graphene thin film on the PET substrate had a good conductivity retainability after multiple cycles (30 cycles) of excessively bending (bending angle: 180°), while tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) thin films on

Novel Transparent Phosphor Conversion Matrix with High Thermal Conductivity for Next Generation Phosphor-Converted LED-based Solid State Lighting

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Bockstaller, Michael [Carnegie Mellon Univ., Pittsburgh, PA (United States)

2017-02-06

The low thermal conductivity of state-of-the-art polymer encapsulants (k ~ 0.15 Wm-1K-1) limits the efficiency and power density of current phosphor conversion light emitting diodes (pc-LEDs). The technical objective of this project was to demonstrate synthesis and processing schemes for the fabrication of polymer hybrid encapsulants with a thermal conductivity exceeding k = 0.4 Wm-1K-1 for LED applications. The ‘hybrid polymer’ approach encompasses the dispersion of high thermal conductivity particle fillers (zinc oxide, ZnO as well as the alpha-polymorph of alumina, Al2O3) within a polysiloxane matrix (poly(dimethylsiloxane), PDMS as well as poly(phenyl methyl siloxane), PPMS) to increase the thermal conductivity while maintaining optical transparency and photothermal stability at levels consistent with LED applications. To accomplish this goal, a novel synthesis method for the fabrication of nanosized ZnO particles was developed and a novel surface chemistry was established to modify the surface of zinc oxide particle fillers and thus to enable their dispersion in poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) matrix polymers. Molecular dynamics and Mie simulations were used to optimize ligand structure and to enable the concurrent mixing of particles in PDMS/PPMS embedding media while also minimizing the thermal boundary resistance as well as optical scattering of particle fillers. Using this approach the synthesis of PDMS/ZnO hybrid encapsulants exhibiting a thermal conductivity of 0.64 Wm-1K-1 and optical transparency > 0.7 mm-1 was demonstrated. A forming process based on micromolding was developed to demonstrate the forming of particle filled PDMS into film and lens shapes. Photothermal stability testing revealed stability of the materials for approximately 4000 min when exposed to blue light LED (450 nm, 30 W/cm2). One postgraduate and seven graduate students were supported by the project. The research performed within this project led to fifteen publications in peer

Printed optically transparent graphene cellulose electrodes

Science.gov (United States)

Sinar, Dogan; Knopf, George K.; Nikumb, Suwas; Andrushchenko, Anatoly

2016-02-01

Optically transparent electrodes are a key component in variety of products including bioelectronics, touch screens, flexible displays, low emissivity windows, and photovoltaic cells. Although highly conductive indium tin oxide (ITO) films are often used in these electrode applications, the raw material is very expensive and the electrodes often fracture when mechanically stressed. An alternative low-cost material for inkjet printing transparent electrodes on glass and flexible polymer substrates is described in this paper. The water based ink is created by using a hydrophilic cellulose derivative, carboxymethyl cellulose (CMC), to help suspend the naturally hydrophobic graphene (G) sheets in a solvent composed of 70% DI water and 30% 2-butoxyethanol. The CMC chain has hydrophobic and hydrophilic functional sites which allow adsorption on G sheets and, therefore, permit the graphene to be stabilized in water by electrostatic and steric forces. Once deposited on the functionalized substrate the electrical conductivity of the printed films can be "tuned" by decomposing the cellulose stabilizer using thermal reduction. The entire electrode can be thermally reduced in an oven or portions of the electrode thermally modified using a laser annealing process. The thermal process can reduce the sheet resistance of G-CMC films to < 100 Ω/sq. Experimental studies show that the optical transmittance and sheet resistance of the G-CMC conductive electrode is a dependent on the film thickness (ie. superimposed printed layers). The printed electrodes have also been doped with AuCl3 to increase electrical conductivity without significantly increasing film thickness and, thereby, maintain high optical transparency.

Customer satisfaction: The role of transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Eskildsen, Jacob Kjær; Kristensen, Kai

2007-01-01

& Westlund, 2003) as well as the structure of the framework (Eskildsen et al., 2004). We know however very little about how the structure of the individual markets with respect to, for instance, how the transparency of products and services affects customer satisfaction. The aim of this article is to analyze...... the effect of the transparency of products and services on customer satisfaction with respect to Danish mobile phone companies, banks and supermarkets from 2004 based on the authors' experiences from the various analyses conducted within the EPSI rating initiative....

Transparência do banco central: uma análise para o caso brasileiro

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Helder Ferreira de Mendonça

2010-03-01

Full Text Available Central Bank transparency: an analysis of the Brazilian case. Nowadays there is a tendency among central banks of increasing transparency in the conduction of the monetary policy. After the adoption of inflation targeting in Brazil there was an increase in the communication of the Central Bank of Brazil with the public. This paper makes a brief review of the recent theoretical and empirical literature concerning this subject. Furthermore, an analysis due to the transparency in the conduction of Brazilian monetary policy on important macroeconomic variables is made. The findings denote that an increase in transparency improves the behavior of several macroeconomic variables.

Investigation on the structural changes of ZnO:Er:Yb thin film during laser annealing to fabricate a transparent conducting upconverter

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Lluscà, Marta, E-mail: marta.llusca@gmail.com [Department of Applied Physics, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Future Industries Institute, University of South Australia, Mawson Lakes, 5095 South Australia (Australia); López-Vidrier, Julian [Department of Electronics, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); IMTEK, Faculty of Engineering, Albert-Ludwigs-University Freiburg, Georges-Köhler-Allee 103, 79110 Freiburg (Germany); Lauzurica, Sara; Canteli, David; Sánchez-Aniorte, Maria I.; Molpeceres, Carlos [Centro Láser, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, 28031 Madrid (Spain); Antony, Aldrin [Department of Applied Physics, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Indian Institute of Technology Bombay, 400076 Mumbai (India); Hernández, Sergi [Department of Electronics, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Alcobé, Xavier [Unitat de Difracció de Raigs X, Centres Científics i Tecnològics, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Garrido, Blas [Department of Electronics, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona (Spain); Bertomeu, Joan [Department of Applied Physics, Universitat de Barcelona, 08028 Barcelona (Spain)

2017-05-15

A transparent and conducting ZnO:Er:Yb thin film with upconversion properties has been achieved after being annealed with continuous laser radiation just before the ablation point of the material. This work demonstrates that the laser energy preserves the conductivity of the film and at the same time creates an adequate surrounding for Er and Yb to produce visible upconversion at 660, 560, 520, and 480 nm under 980 nm laser excitation. The relation between the structural, electrical and upconversion properties is discussed. It is observed that the laser energy melts part of the material, which recrystallizes creating rare earth oxides and two different wurtzite structures, one with substitutional rare earths and oxygen vacancies (responsible for the conductivity) and the other without substitutional rare earth ions (responsible for the upconversion emission).

On interaction of P-waves with one-dimensional photonic crystal consisting of weak conducting matter and transparent dielectric layers

Science.gov (United States)

Yushkanov, A. A.; Zverev, N. V.

2018-03-01

An influence of quantum and spatial dispersion properties of the non-degenerate electron plasma on the interaction of electromagnetic P-waves with one-dimensional photonic crystal consisting of conductor with low carrier electron density and transparent dielectric matter, is studied numerically. It is shown that at the frequencies of order of the plasma frequency and at small widths of the conducting and dielectric layers of the photonic crystal, optical coefficients in the quantum non-degenerate plasma approach differ from the coefficients in the classical electron gas approach. And also, at these frequencies one observes a temperature dependence of the optical coefficients.

On the transparent conducting oxide Al doped ZnO: First Principles and Boltzmann equations study

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Slassi, A. [Institute of Nanomaterials and Nanotechnology, MAScIR, Rabat (Morocco); LMPHE (URAC 12), Faculté des Sciences, Université Mohammed V-Agdal, Rabat (Morocco); Naji, S. [LMPHE (URAC 12), Faculté des Sciences, Université Mohammed V-Agdal, Rabat (Morocco); Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Ibb University, Ibb (Yemen); Benyoussef, A. [Institute of Nanomaterials and Nanotechnology, MAScIR, Rabat (Morocco); LMPHE (URAC 12), Faculté des Sciences, Université Mohammed V-Agdal, Rabat (Morocco); Hamedoun, M., E-mail: hamedoun@hotmail.com [Institute of Nanomaterials and Nanotechnology, MAScIR, Rabat (Morocco); El Kenz, A. [LMPHE (URAC 12), Faculté des Sciences, Université Mohammed V-Agdal, Rabat (Morocco)

2014-08-25

Highlights: • The incorporation of Al in ZnO increases the optical band edge absorption. • Incorporated Al creates shallow donor states of Al-3s around Fermi level. • Transmittance decreases in the visible and IR regions, while it increases in the UV region. • Electrical conductivity increases and reaches almost the saturation for high concentration of Al. - Abstract: We report, in this work, a theoretical study on the electronic, optical and electrical properties of pure and Al doped ZnO with different concentrations. In fact, we investigate these properties using both First Principles calculations within TB-mBJ approximation and Boltzmann equations under the constant relaxation time approximation for charge carriers. It is found out that, the calculated lattice parameters and the optical band gap of pure ZnO are close to the experimental values and in a good agreement with the other theoretical studies. It is also observed that, the incorporations of Al in ZnO increase the optical band edge absorption which leads to a blue shift and no deep impurities levels are induced in the band gap as well. More precisely, these incorporations create shallow donor states around Fermi level in the conduction band minimum from mainly Al-3s orbital. Beside this, it is found that, the transmittance is decreased in the visible and IR regions, while it is significantly improved in UV region. Finally, our calculations show that the electrical conductivity is enhanced as a result of Al doping and it reaches almost the saturation for high concentration of Al. These features make Al doped ZnO a transparent conducting electrode for optoelectronic device applications.

Characterization of a new transparent-conducting material of ZnO doped ITO thin films

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, H. M.

2005-11-01

Thin films of indium tin oxide (ITO) doped with zinc oxide have the remarkable properties of being conductive yet still highly transparent in the visible and near-IR spectral ranges. The Electron beam deposi- tion technique is one of the simplest and least expensive ways of preparing. High-quality ITO thin films have been deposited on glass substrates by Electron beam evaporation technique. The effect of doping and substrate deposition temperature was found to have a significant effect on the structure, electrical and optical properties of ZnO doped ITO films. The average optical transmittance has been increased with in- creasing the substrate temperature. The maximum value of transmittance is greater than 84% in the visible region and 85% in the NIR region obtained for film with Zn/ITO = 0.13 at substrate temperature 200 °C. The dielectric constant, average excitation energy for electronic transitions (E o), the dispersion energy (E d), the long wavelength refractive index (n ), average oscillator wave length ( o) and oscillator strength S o for the thin films were determined and presented in this work.

Improved Laser Scribing of Transparent Conductive Oxide for Fabrication of Thin-Film Solar Module

Science.gov (United States)

Egorov, F. S.; Kukin, A. V.; Terukov, E. I.; Titov, A. S.

2018-04-01

Nonuniform thickness of the front transparent conductive oxide (TCO) used for fabrication of thin-film solar module (TFSM) based on micromorphic technology affects P1 laser scribing (P1 scribing on the TCO front layer). A method for improvement of the thickness uniformity of the front TCO using modification of the existing system for gas supply of the LPCVD (TCO1200) vacuum setup with the aid of gasdistributing tubes is proposed. The thickness nonuniformity of the deposition procedure is decreased from 15.2 to 11.4% to improve uniformity of the resistance of the front TCO and light-scattering factor of TFSM. In addition, the number of P1 laser scribes with inadmissible resistance of insulation (less than 2 MΩ) is decreased by a factor of 7. A decrease in the amount of melt at the P1 scribe edges leads to an increase in the TFSM shunting resistance by 56 Ω. The TFSM output power is increased by 0.4 W due to improvement of parameters of the front TCO related to application of gas-distributing tubes.

Exploiting both optical and electrical anisotropy in nanowire electrodes for higher transparency.

Science.gov (United States)

Dong, Jianjin; Goldthorpe, Irene A

2018-01-26

Transparent electrodes such as indium tin oxide and random meshes of silver nanowires (AgNWs) have isotropic in-plane properties. However, we show that imparting some alignment to AgNWs can create anisotropic transparency and electrical conductivity characteristics that may benefit many applications. For example, liquid crystal displays and the touch sensors on top of them often only need to be transparent to one type of polarized light as well as predominantly conductive in only one direction. Herein, AgNWs are slightly preferentially aligned during their deposition by rod coating. Compared to randomly oriented AgNW films, the alignment boosts the transparency to perpendicularly polarized light, as well as achieves a higher transparency for a given sheet resistance in one direction compared to randomly oriented AgNWs films. These factors together increase the transparency of a 16 Ω/sq electrode by 7.3 percentage points. The alignment technique is cheap and scalable, compatible with roll-to-roll processes, and most importantly does not require extra processing steps, as rod coating is already a standard process for AgNW electrode fabrication.

Why is Transparency Greenland Necessary?

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Jensen, Boris Brorman

2012-01-01

Greenland is facing significant changes in the composition of its economy, and is moving rapidly in the direction of becoming a commodities economy. Studies conducted by Transparency International in other parts of the world suggest that oil exploration and mining are among the areas of economic...

Embedded Ag Grid Electrodes as Current Collector for Ultraflexible Transparent Solid-State Supercapacitor.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Jian-Long; Liu, Yan-Hua; Gao, Xu; Sun, Yilin; Shen, Su; Cai, Xinlei; Chen, Linsen; Wang, Sui-Dong

2017-08-23

Flexible transparent solid-state supercapacitors have attracted immerse attention for the power supply of next-generation flexible "see-through" or "invisible" electronics. For fabrication of such devices, high-performance flexible transparent current collectors are highly desired. In this paper, the utilization of embedded Ag grid transparent conductive electrodes (TCEs) fabricated by a facile soft ultraviolet imprinting lithography method combined with scrap techniques, as the current collector for flexible transparent solid-state supercapacitors, is demonstrated. The embedded Ag grid TCEs exhibit not only excellent optoelectronic properties (R S ∼ 2.0 Ω sq -1 and T ∼ 89.74%) but also robust mechanical properties, which could meet the conductivity, transparency, and flexibility needs of current collectors for flexible transparent supercapacitors. The obtained supercapacitor exhibits large specific capacitance, long cycling life, high optical transparency (T ∼ 80.58% at 550 nm), high flexibility, and high stability. Owing to the embedded Ag grid TCE structure, the device shows a slight capacitance loss of 2.6% even after 1000 cycles of repetitive bending for a bending radius of up to 2.0 mm. This paves the way for developing high-performance current collectors and thus flexible transparent energy storage devices, and their general applicability opens up opportunities for flexible transparent electronics.

One-Step Process for High-Performance, Adhesive, Flexible Transparent Conductive Films Based on p-Type Reduced Graphene Oxides and Silver Nanowires.

Science.gov (United States)

Lai, Yi-Ting; Tai, Nyan-Hwa

2015-08-26

This work demonstrates a one-step process to synthesize uniformly dispersed hybrid nanomaterial containing silver nanowires (AgNWs) and p-type reduced graphene (p-rGO). The hybrid nanomaterial was coated onto a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate for preparing high-performance flexible transparent conductive films (TCFs). The p-rGO plays the role of bridging discrete AgNWs, providing more electron holes and lowering the resistance of the contacted AgNWs; therefore, enhancing the electrical conductivity without sacrificing too much transparence of the TCFs. Additionally, the p-rGO also improves the adhesion between AgNWs and substrate by covering the AgNWs on the substrate tightly. The study shows that coating of the hybrid nanomaterials on the PET substrate demonstrates exceptional optoelectronic properties with a transmittance of 94.68% (at a wavelength of 550 nm) and a sheet resistance of 25.0 ± 0.8 Ω/sq. No significant variation in electric resistance can be detected even when the film was subjected to a bend loading with a radius of curvature of 5.0 mm or the film was loaded with a reciprocal tension or compression for 1000 cycles. Furthermore, both chemical corrosion resistance and haze effect were improved when p-rGO was introduced. The study shows that the fabricated flexible TCFs have the potential to replace indium tin oxide film in the optoelectronic industry.

Measurements of the Characteristics of Transparent Material Using Digital Holography

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ding Yu

2013-01-01

Full Text Available Digital holography is applied to measure the characteristics of transparent material. A digital hologram recording system to measure the surface of transparent material was established, and the digital holograms of transparent object were obtained in high quality. For postprocessing of hologram, the least-squares phase unwrapping algorithm was used in phase unwrapping, and the phase reconstruction image of transparent object was obtained. The information of material surfaces was measured and the characteristic was presented in 3D visualization. The validation experiment was conducted by NanoMap 500LS system; the results of validation experiment are well satisfied with the measurement by digital holography, which proved the feasibility of digital holographic technology as a good measurement tool for transparent material.

Co-sputtered ZnO:Si thin films as transparent conductive oxides

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Faure, C. [CNRS, Univ. Bordeaux, ICMCB, UPR 9048, F33600 Pessac (France); Clatot, J. [LRCS, 33 Rue St Leu, F-80039 Amiens (France); Teule-Gay, L.; Campet, G. [CNRS, Univ. Bordeaux, ICMCB, UPR 9048, F33600 Pessac (France); Labrugere, C. [CeCaMA, Universite de Bordeaux, ICMCB, 87 avenue du Dr. A. Schweitzer, Pessac, F-33608 (France); Nistor, M. [National Institute for Lasers, Plasmas and Radiation Physics, L22, PO Box MG-36, 77125 Bucharest-Magurele (Romania); Rougier, A., E-mail: rougier@icmcb-bordeaux.cnrs.fr [CNRS, Univ. Bordeaux, ICMCB, UPR 9048, F33600 Pessac (France)

2012-12-01

Silicon doped Zinc Oxide thin films, so-called SZO, were deposited at room temperature on glass and plastic substrates by co-sputtering of ZnO and SiO{sub 2} targets. The influence of the SiO{sub 2} target power supply (from 30 to 75 W) on the SZO thin film composition and crystallinity is discussed. Si/Zn atomic ratio, determined by X-ray microprobe, increases from 1.2 to 8.2 at.%. For Si/Zn ratio equal and lower than 3.9%, SZO (S{sub 3.9}ZO) thin films exhibit the Wurzite structure with the (0 0 2) preferred orientation. Larger Si content leads to a decrease in crystallinity. With Si addition, the resistivity decreases down to 3.5 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -3} Ohm-Sign {center_dot}cm for SZO thin film containing 3.9 at.% of Si prior to an increase. The mean transmittance of S{sub 3.9}ZO thin film on glass substrate approaches 80% (it is about 90% for the film itself) in the visible range (from 400 to 750 nm). Co-sputtered SZO thin films are suitable candidates for large area transparent conductive oxides. - Highlights: Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Si doped ZnO thin films by co-sputtering of ZnO and SiO{sub 2} targets. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Minimum of resistivity for Si doped ZnO thin films containing 3.9% of Si. Black-Right-Pointing-Pointer Si and O environments by X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy.

Transparent conducting sol-gel ATO coatings for display applications by an improved dip coating technique

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Guzman, G.; Dahmani, B.; Puetz, J.; Aegerter, M.A.

2006-01-01

Transparent conducting coatings of sol-gel ATO (antimony-doped tin oxide) were used to improve surface smoothness of commercial sputter-deposited ITO (indium tin oxide) coatings for application as display electrodes. In order to overcome the deteriorating evaporation-cooling during dip coating, the coating solution was heated moderately to 25 deg. C thus providing the substrate with the required heat. This way, the surface roughness of the ITO could be reduced with an only 45 nm thick ATO coating to R pv = 3.8 nm (R a = 0.4 nm) compared to 31 nm (3.8 nm) for the ITO substrate. Another benefit of such additional coating is the possibility to tailor surface properties of the electrodes in wide ranges. This was used to increase the work function of the ITO substrate from initially 4.3-4.6 eV to about 4.8-5.2 eV by the ATO coating

Peering into Transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Lars Thøger; Cheney, George

2015-01-01

organizational effectiveness and widened democratic practice. Yet, with its most common operationalization, as information, transparency reinstalls a 'purified' notion of communication devoid of mystery, inaccuracy, and (mis)representation. We apply transparency to itself by unpacking its implicit model......The current emphasis on organizational transparency signifies a growing demand for insight, clarity, accountability, and participation. Holding the promise of improved access to valid and trustworthy knowledge about organizations, the transparency pursuit has great potential for enhanced...... of communication and critiquing its obliviousness to the representative nature of transparency-related messages and the attendant complexities of motivation. This critique interrogates the ambiguities and ambivalence of the transparency pursuit and demonstrates how the goals of organizational transparency...

Conductive polymer/fullerene blend thin films with honeycomb framework for transparent photovoltaic application

Science.gov (United States)

Cotlet, Mircea; Wang, Hsing-Lin; Tsai, Hsinhan; Xu, Zhihua

2015-04-21

Optoelectronic devices and thin-film semiconductor compositions and methods for making same are disclosed. The methods provide for the synthesis of the disclosed composition. The thin-film semiconductor compositions disclosed herein have a unique configuration that exhibits efficient photo-induced charge transfer and high transparency to visible light.

Improve the surface of silver nanowire transparent electrode using a double-layer structure for the quantum-dot light-emitting diodes

Science.gov (United States)

Cho, Seok Hyeon; Been Heo, Su; Kang, Seong Jun

2018-03-01

We developed a double-layer structured transparent electrode for use in flexible quantum-dot light-emitting diodes (QLEDs). Silver nanowires (AgNWs) and highly conductive poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) were coated on a transparent substrate to obtain a highly conductive and flexible transparent electrode. The highly conductive PEDOT:PSS improved the surface roughness of the AgNWs transparent electrode film as well as the surface coverage area of the film. The double-layer structured transparent electrode showed superior mechanical properties than conventional indium-tin oxide (ITO) and AgNWs transparent electrodes. QLEDs with the double-layer structured transparent electrode also showed good reliability under cyclic bending conditions. These results indicate that the double-layer structured AgNWs/PEDOT:PSS transparent electrode described here is a feasible alternative to ITO transparent electrodes for flexible QLEDs.

Illusionary Transparency? Oil Revenues, Information Disclosure, and Transparency

OpenAIRE

Ofori, Jerome Jeffison; Lujala, Päivi

2015-01-01

xperience shows that discovery of valuable natural resources can become a curse rather than a blessing, and transparency has been identified as key to better resource governance because it can limit opportunities for corruption and mismanagement. This article shows that information disclosure, in which many governments and donor institutions engage, does not automatically translate into transparency. Ghana has embedded transparency as one of its key principles in oil management. However, fiel...

Electrical property heterogeneity at transparent conductive oxide/organic semiconductor interfaces: mapping contact ohmicity using conducting-tip atomic force microscopy.

Science.gov (United States)

MacDonald, Gordon A; Veneman, P Alexander; Placencia, Diogenes; Armstrong, Neal R

2012-11-27

We demonstrate mapping of electrical properties of heterojunctions of a molecular semiconductor (copper phthalocyanine, CuPc) and a transparent conducting oxide (indium-tin oxide, ITO), on 20-500 nm length scales, using a conductive-probe atomic force microscopy technique, scanning current spectroscopy (SCS). SCS maps are generated for CuPc/ITO heterojunctions as a function of ITO activation procedures and modification with variable chain length alkyl-phosphonic acids (PAs). We correlate differences in small length scale electrical properties with the performance of organic photovoltaic cells (OPVs) based on CuPc/C(60) heterojunctions, built on these same ITO substrates. SCS maps the "ohmicity" of ITO/CuPc heterojunctions, creating arrays of spatially resolved current-voltage (J-V) curves. Each J-V curve is fit with modified Mott-Gurney expressions, mapping a fitted exponent (γ), where deviations from γ = 2.0 suggest nonohmic behavior. ITO/CuPc/C(60)/BCP/Al OPVs built on nonactivated ITO show mainly nonohmic SCS maps and dark J-V curves with increased series resistance (R(S)), lowered fill-factors (FF), and diminished device performance, especially near the open-circuit voltage. Nearly optimal behavior is seen for OPVs built on oxygen-plasma-treated ITO contacts, which showed SCS maps comparable to heterojunctions of CuPc on clean Au. For ITO electrodes modified with PAs there is a strong correlation between PA chain length and the degree of ohmicity and uniformity of electrical response in ITO/CuPc heterojunctions. ITO electrodes modified with 6-8 carbon alkyl-PAs show uniform and nearly ohmic SCS maps, coupled with acceptable CuPc/C(60)OPV performance. ITO modified with C14 and C18 alkyl-PAs shows dramatic decreases in FF, increases in R(S), and greatly enhanced recombination losses.

The impact of packaging transparency on product attractiveness

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Barbara Sabo

2017-12-01

Full Text Available The aim of the study was to investigate the impact of different levels of packaging transparency on the evaluation of attractiveness of a product within the packaging, in relation to whether it is a healthy or unhealthy product. Consumer preferences during buying decision process were also investigated. The study was conducted by two methods. The first one was related to consumer preferences and was based on a choice task, while the other one was related to packaging attractiveness and was based on subjective evaluation expressed through the Likert scale. Eight samples of packaging were used. They differed according to product type (healthy and unhealthy, and the level of transparency (fully transparent packaging, packaging with two windows, packaging with one window and non-transparent packaging. According to the results, consumers tend to ignore non-transparent packaging, regardless the product healthiness. The findings indicate the importance of thoughtful selection of packaging structure and its material in design process and launching the food products on the retail market.

Improvement of the optoelectronic properties of tin oxide transparent conductive thin films through lanthanum doping

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Mrabet, C., E-mail: chokri.mrabet@hotmail.com; Boukhachem, A.; Amlouk, M.; Manoubi, T.

2016-05-05

This work highlights some physical investigations on tin oxide thin films doped with different lanthanum content (ratio La–to-Sn = 0–3%). Such doped thin films have been successfully grown by spray pyrolysis onto glass substrates at 450 °C. X-ray diffraction (XRD) patterns showed that SnO{sub 2}:La thin films were polycrystalline with tetragonal crystal structure. The preferred orientation of crystallites for undoped SnO{sub 2} thin film was along (110) plane, whereas La-doped ones have rather preferential orientations along (200) direction. Although the grain size values exhibited a decreasing tendency with increasing doping content confirming the role of La as a grain growth inhibitor, dislocation density and microstrain values showed an increasing tendency. Also, Raman spectroscopy shows the bands corresponding to the tetragonal structure for the entire range of La doping. The same technique confirms the presence of La{sub 2}O{sub 3} as secondary phase. Moreover, SEM images showed a porous architecture with presence of big clusters with different sizes and shapes resulting from the agglomeration of small grains round shaped. Photoluminescence spectra of SnO{sub 2}:La thin films exhibit a decrease in the emission intensity with La concentration due to the decrease in grain size. Optical transmittance spectra of the films showed high transparency (∼80%) in the visible region. The dispersion of the refractive index is discussed using both Cauchy model and Wemple–Di-Domenico method. The optical band gap values vary slightly with La doping and were found to be around 3.8 eV. It has been found that La doping causes a pronounced decrease in the sheet resistance by up to two orders of magnitude and allows improving the Haacke's figure of merit (Φ) of the sprayed thin films. Moreover, we have introduced for a first time a new figure of merit for qualifying photo-thermal conversion applications. The obtained high conducting and transparent SnO{sub 2}:La

Transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Flyverbom, Mikkel

2016-01-01

This article challenges the view of transparency as a matter of providing openness, insight, and clarity by conceptualizing it as a form of visibility management. We tend to think of transparency as a process of ensuring accountability through the timely and public disclosure of information...

The properties of transparent conducting molybdenum-doped ZnO films grown by radio frequency magnetron sputtering

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Xiu Xian-Wu; Zhao Wen-Jing

2012-01-01

Transparent conducting molybdenum-doped zinc oxide films are prepared by radio frequency (RF) magnetron sputtering at ambient temperature. The MoO 3 content in the target varies from 0 to 5 wt%, and each film is polycrystalline with a hexagonal structure and a preferred orientation along the c axis. The resistivity first decreases and then increases with the increase in MoO 3 content. The lowest resistivity achieved is 9.2×10 −4 Ω·cm, with a high Hall mobility of 30 cm 2 ·V −1 ·s 1 and a carrier concentration of 2.3×10 20 cm −3 at an MoO 3 content of 2 wt%. The average transmittance in the visible range is reduced from 91% to 80% with the increase in the MoO 3 content in the target. (condensed matter: structural, mechanical, and thermal properties)

2009 Annual Health Physics Report for the HEU Transparency Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Radev, R.

2010-01-01

During the 2009 calendar year, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) provided health physics support for the Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) Transparency Program for external and internal radiation protection. LLNL also provided technical expertise related to BDMS radioactive sources and Russian radiation safety regulatory compliance. For the calendar year 2009, there were 159 person-trips that required dose monitoring of the U.S. monitors. Of the 159 person-trips, 149 person-trips were SMVs and 10 person-trips were Transparency Monitoring Office (TMO) trips. There were 4 monitoring visits by TMO monitors to facilities other than UEIE and 10 to UEIE itself. LLNL's Hazard Control Department laboratories provided the dosimetry services for the HEU Transparency monitors. In 2009, the HEU Transparency activities in Russia were conducted in a radiologically safe manner for the HEU Transparency monitors in accordance with the expectations of the HEU Transparency staff, NNSA and DOE. The HEU Transparency Program now has over fifteen years of successful experience in developing and providing health and safety support in meeting its technical objectives.

Transparent conducting properties of anatase Ti{sub 0.94}Nb{sub 0.06}O{sub 2} polycrystalline films on glass substrate

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hitosugi, T. [Department of Chemistry, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033 (Japan); Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology (KAST), Kawasaki 213-0012 (Japan)], E-mail: hitosugi@chem.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp; Ueda, A. [Department of Chemistry, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033 (Japan); Nakao, S.; Yamada, N.; Furubayashi, Y.; Hirose, Y.; Konuma, S. [Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology (KAST), Kawasaki 213-0012 (Japan); Shimada, T.; Hasegawa, T. [Department of Chemistry, University of Tokyo, Tokyo 113-0033 (Japan); Kanagawa Academy of Science and Technology (KAST), Kawasaki 213-0012 (Japan)

2008-07-01

We report on transparent conducting properties of anatase Ti{sub 0.94}Nb{sub 0.06}O{sub 2} (TNO) polycrystalline films on glass substrate, and discuss the role of grain crystallinity and grain boundary on resistivity. Thin films of TNO were deposited using pulsed laser deposition at substrate temperature ranging from room temperature to 350 deg. C, with subsequent H{sub 2}-annealing at 500 deg. C. Polycrystalline TNO films showed resistivity of 4.5 x 10{sup -4} {omega} cm and 1.5 x 10{sup -3} {omega} cm for films prepared at substrate temperature of room temperature and 250 deg. C, respectively. X-ray diffraction measurements and transmission electron microscopy reveal that grain crystallinity and grain boundary play key roles in conductive films.

Graphene-based transparent electrodes for hybrid solar cells

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Pengfei eLi

2014-11-01

Full Text Available The graphene-based transparent and conductive films were demonstrated to be cost-effective electrodes working in organic-inorganic hybrid Schottky solar cells. Large area graphene films were produced by chemical vapor deposition (CVD on copper foils and transferred onto glass as transparent electrodes. The hybrid solar cell devices consist of solution processed poly (3, 4-ethlenedioxythiophene: poly (styrenesulfonate (PEDOT: PSS which is sandwiched between silicon wafer and graphene electrode. The solar cells based on graphene electrodes, especially those doped with HNO3, has comparable performance to the reference devices using commercial indium tin oxide (ITO. Our work suggests that graphene-based transparent electrode is a promising candidate to replace ITO.

Rapid synthesis of ultra-long silver nanowires for tailor-made transparent conductive electrodes: proof of concept in organic solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

José Andrés, Luis; Fe Menéndez, María; Gómez, David; Luisa Martínez, Ana; Menéndez, Armando; Bristow, Noel; Paul Kettle, Jeffrey; Ruiz, Bernardino

2015-01-01

Rapid synthesis of ultralong silver nanowires (AgNWs) has been obtained using a one-pot polyol-mediated synthetic procedure. The AgNWs have been prepared from the base materials in less than one hour with nanowire lengths reaching 195 μm, which represents the quickest synthesis and one of the highest reported aspect ratios to date. These results have been achieved through a joint analysis of all reaction parameters, which represents a clear progress beyond the state of the art. Dispersions of the AgNWs have been used to prepare thin, flexible, transparent and conducting films using spray coating. Due to the higher aspect ratio, an improved electrical percolation network is observed. This allows a low sheet resistance (R_S = 20.2 Ω/sq), whilst maintaining high optical film transparency (T = 94.7%), driving to the highest reported figure-of-merit (FoM = 338). Owing to the light-scattering influence of the AgNWs, the density of the AgNW network can also be varied to enable controllability of the optical haze through the sample. Based on the identification of the optimal haze value, organic photovoltaics (OPVs) have been fabricated using the AgNWs as the transparent electrode and have been benchmarked against indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes. Overall, the performance of OPVs made using AgNWs sees a small decrease in power conversion efficiency (PCE), primarily due to a fall in open-circuit voltage (50 mV). This work indicates that AgNWs can provide a low cost, rapid and roll-to-roll compatible alternative to ITO in OPVs, with only a small compromise in PCE needed. (paper)

Rapid synthesis of ultra-long silver nanowires for tailor-made transparent conductive electrodes: proof of concept in organic solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

José Andrés, Luis; Menéndez, María Fe; Gómez, David; Martínez, Ana Luisa; Bristow, Noel; Kettle, Jeffrey Paul; Menéndez, Armando; Ruiz, Bernardino

2015-07-01

Rapid synthesis of ultralong silver nanowires (AgNWs) has been obtained using a one-pot polyol-mediated synthetic procedure. The AgNWs have been prepared from the base materials in less than one hour with nanowire lengths reaching 195 μm, which represents the quickest synthesis and one of the highest reported aspect ratios to date. These results have been achieved through a joint analysis of all reaction parameters, which represents a clear progress beyond the state of the art. Dispersions of the AgNWs have been used to prepare thin, flexible, transparent and conducting films using spray coating. Due to the higher aspect ratio, an improved electrical percolation network is observed. This allows a low sheet resistance (RS = 20.2 Ω/sq), whilst maintaining high optical film transparency (T = 94.7%), driving to the highest reported figure-of-merit (FoM = 338). Owing to the light-scattering influence of the AgNWs, the density of the AgNW network can also be varied to enable controllability of the optical haze through the sample. Based on the identification of the optimal haze value, organic photovoltaics (OPVs) have been fabricated using the AgNWs as the transparent electrode and have been benchmarked against indium tin oxide (ITO) electrodes. Overall, the performance of OPVs made using AgNWs sees a small decrease in power conversion efficiency (PCE), primarily due to a fall in open-circuit voltage (50 mV). This work indicates that AgNWs can provide a low cost, rapid and roll-to-roll compatible alternative to ITO in OPVs, with only a small compromise in PCE needed.

Highly transparent and conductive Al-doped ZnO nanoparticulate thin films using direct write processing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Vunnam, S; Ankireddy, K; Kellar, J; Cross, W

2014-01-01

Solution processable Al-doped ZnO (AZO) thin films are attractive candidates for low cost transparent electrodes. We demonstrate here an optimized nanoparticulate ink for the fabrication of AZO thin films using scalable, low-cost direct write processing (ultrasonic spray deposition) in air at atmospheric pressure. The thin films were made via thermal processing of as-deposited films. AZO films deposited using the proposed nanoparticulate ink with further reducing in vacuum and rf plasma of forming gas exhibited optical transparency greater than 95% across the visible spectrum, and electrical resistivity of 0.5 Ω cm and it drops down to 7.0 × 10 −2 Ω cm after illuminating with UV light, which is comparable to commercially available tin doped indium oxide colloidal coatings. Various structural analyses were performed to investigate the influence of ink chemistry, deposition parameters, and annealing temperatures on the structural, optical, and electrical characteristics of the spray deposited AZO thin films. Optical micrographs confirmed the presence of surface defects and cracks using the AZO NPs ink without any additives. After adding N-(2-Aminoethyl)-3-aminopropylmethyldimethoxy silane to the ink, AZO films exhibited an optical transparency which was virtually identical to that of the plain glass substrate. (papers)

Polymer-metal hybrid transparent electrodes for flexible electronics

Science.gov (United States)

Kang, Hongkyu; Jung, Suhyun; Jeong, Soyeong; Kim, Geunjin; Lee, Kwanghee

2015-03-01

Despite nearly two decades of research, the absence of ideal flexible and transparent electrodes has been the largest obstacle in realizing flexible and printable electronics for future technologies. Here we report the fabrication of ‘polymer-metal hybrid electrodes’ with high-performance properties, including a bending radius 95% and a sheet resistance solar cells that exhibit a high power conversion efficiency of 10% and polymer light-emitting diodes that can outperform those based on transparent conducting oxides.

Studies on high electronic energy deposition in transparent conducting indium tin oxide thin films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Deshpande, N G [Thin Film and Nanotechnology Laboratory, Department of Physics, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad-431004 (MS) (India); Gudage, Y G [Thin Film and Nanotechnology Laboratory, Department of Physics, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad-431004 (MS) (India); Ghosh, A [Thin Film and Nanotechnology Laboratory, Department of Physics, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad-431004 (MS) (India); Vyas, J C [Technical and Prototype Engineering Division, Bhabha Atomic Research Center, Trombay, Mumbai (MS) (India); Singh, F [Inter-University Accelerator Center, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, Post Box 10502, New Delhi 110067 (India); Tripathi, A [Inter-University Accelerator Center, Aruna Asaf Ali Marg, Post Box 10502, New Delhi 110067 (India); Sharma, Ramphal [Thin Film and Nanotechnology Laboratory, Department of Physics, Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Marathwada University, Aurangabad-431004 (MS) (India)

2008-02-07

We have examined the effect of swift heavy ions using 100 MeV Au{sup 8+} ions on the electrical properties of transparent, conducting indium tin oxide polycrystalline films with resistivity of 0.58 x 10{sup -4} {omega} cm and optical transmission greater than 78% (pristine). We report on the modifications occurring after high electronic energy deposition. With the increase in fluency, x-ray line intensity of the peaks corresponding to the planes (1 1 0), (4 0 0), (4 4 1) increased, while (3 3 1) remained constant. Surface morphological studies showed a pomegranate structure of pristine samples, which was highly disturbed with a high dose of irradiation. For the high dose, there was a formation of small spherical domes uniformly distributed over the entire surface. The transmittance was seen to be decreasing with the increase in ion fluency. At higher doses, the resistivity and photoluminescence intensity was seen to be decreased. In addition, the carrier concentration was seen to be increased, which was in accordance with the decrease in resistivity. The observed modifications after high electronic energy deposition in these films may lead to fruitful device applications.

Studies on high electronic energy deposition in transparent conducting indium tin oxide thin films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Deshpande, N G; Gudage, Y G; Ghosh, A; Vyas, J C; Singh, F; Tripathi, A; Sharma, Ramphal

2008-01-01

We have examined the effect of swift heavy ions using 100 MeV Au 8+ ions on the electrical properties of transparent, conducting indium tin oxide polycrystalline films with resistivity of 0.58 x 10 -4 Ω cm and optical transmission greater than 78% (pristine). We report on the modifications occurring after high electronic energy deposition. With the increase in fluency, x-ray line intensity of the peaks corresponding to the planes (1 1 0), (4 0 0), (4 4 1) increased, while (3 3 1) remained constant. Surface morphological studies showed a pomegranate structure of pristine samples, which was highly disturbed with a high dose of irradiation. For the high dose, there was a formation of small spherical domes uniformly distributed over the entire surface. The transmittance was seen to be decreasing with the increase in ion fluency. At higher doses, the resistivity and photoluminescence intensity was seen to be decreased. In addition, the carrier concentration was seen to be increased, which was in accordance with the decrease in resistivity. The observed modifications after high electronic energy deposition in these films may lead to fruitful device applications

Transparency in Organizing

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Albu, Oana Brindusa

This dissertation provides a critical analysis of transparency in the context of organizing. The empirical material is based on qualitative studies of international cooperative organizations. The dissertation seeks to contribute to transparency and organizing scholarship by adopting a communication...... centred approach to explore the implications of pursuing ideals of transparency in organizational relationships. The dissertation is comprised of four papers each contributing to extant debates in organizational studies and transparency literature. The findings indicate that transparency, in contrast...... to being a solution for efficiency and democratic organizing, is a communicatively contested process which may lead to unintended consequences. The dissertation shows that transparency is performative: it can impact authority by de/legitimating action, shape the processes of organizational identity co...

Highly transparent and thermal-stable silver nanowire conductive film covered with ZnMgO by atomic-layer-deposition

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, Lei; Huang, Dongchen; Li, Min; Xu, Hua; Zou, Jianhua; Tao, Hong; Peng, Junbiao; Xu, Miao

2017-12-01

Solution-processed silver nanowires (AgNWs) have been considered as a promising material for next generation flexible transparent conductive electrodes. However AgNWs films have several intrinsic drawbacks, such as thermal stability and storage stability. Herein, we demonstrate a laminated ZnO/MgO (ZnMgO, ZMO) as a protective layer on the AgNWs films using atomic layer deposition (ALD). The fabricated films exhibited a low sheet resistance of 16 Ω/sq with high transmittance of 91% at 550 nm, an excellent thermal stability and bending property. The ZMO film grows perpendicularly on the surface of the AgNWs, making a perfect coverage of bulk silver nanowires and junction, which can effectively prompt the electrical transport behavior and enhance stability of the silver nanowires network.

Nanoscale current spreading analysis in solution-processed graphene oxide/silver nanowire transparent electrodes via conductive atomic force microscopy

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Shaw, Joseph E.; Perumal, Ajay; Bradley, Donal D. C.; Stavrinou, Paul N.; Anthopoulos, Thomas D., E-mail: t.anthopoulos@ic.ac.uk [Department of Physics and Centre for Plastic Electronics, Blackett Laboratory, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ (United Kingdom)

2016-05-21

We use conductive atomic force microscopy (CAFM) to study the origin of long-range conductivity in model transparent conductive electrodes composed of networks of reduced graphene oxide (rGO{sub X}) and silver nanowires (AgNWs), with nanoscale spatial resolution. Pristine networks of rGO{sub X} (1–3 monolayers-thick) and AgNWs exhibit sheet resistances of ∼100–1000 kΩ/□ and 100–900 Ω/□, respectively. When the materials are deposited sequentially to form bilayer rGO{sub X}/AgNW electrodes and thermally annealed at 200 °C, the sheet resistance reduces by up to 36% as compared to pristine AgNW networks. CAFM was used to analyze the current spreading in both systems in order to identify the nanoscale phenomena responsible for this effect. For rGO{sub X} networks, the low intra-flake conductivity and the inter-flake contact resistance is found to dominate the macroscopic sheet resistance, while for AgNW networks the latter is determined by the density of the inter-AgNW junctions and their associated resistance. In the case of the bilayer rGO{sub X}/AgNWs' networks, rGO{sub X} flakes are found to form conductive “bridges” between AgNWs. We show that these additional nanoscopic electrical connections are responsible for the enhanced macroscopic conductivity of the bilayer rGO{sub X}/AgNW electrodes. Finally, the critical role of thermal annealing on the formation of these nanoscopic connections is discussed.

Roll-to-roll fabrication of a low-reflectance transparent conducting oxide film with subwavelength structures

Science.gov (United States)

Chou, Ta-Hsin; Cheng, Kuei-Yuan; Hsieh, Chih-Wei; Takaya, Yasuhiro

2012-04-01

The transparent conducting oxide (TCO) film is a significant component in flat panel display, e-paper and touch panel. The tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) material is one of the most popular TCOs. However, ITO has high refractive index, so the phenomenon of high-reflectance limits the wide use of ITO. In this study, the structure and mass production process of new low-reflectance TCO film is verified. Laser interference lithography and the roll-to-roll UV embossing process are used to fabricate subwavelength structures on PET film; then ITO was deposited on structures by roll-to-roll sputtering. When the dimension of structures reaches 300 nm pitch, the optical reflectance and electrical performance of film are reduced to 8.1% at wavelength 550 nm and its transmittance rate is 84.3% at the same wavelength, and the sheet resistance of this film is 50.44 Ω/□. This result indicates that the new TCO proposed in this study is suitable for touch panel and other display applications.

Transparent conductive ZnO layers on polymer substrates: Thin film deposition and application in organic solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Dosmailov, M. [Institute of Applied Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Leonat, L.N. [Linz Institute for Organic Solar Cells (LIOS)/Institute of Physical Chemistry, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Patek, J. [Institute of Applied Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Roth, D.; Bauer, P. [Institute of Experimental Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Scharber, M.C.; Sariciftci, N.S. [Linz Institute for Organic Solar Cells (LIOS)/Institute of Physical Chemistry, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria); Pedarnig, J.D., E-mail: johannes.pedarnig@jku.at [Institute of Applied Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, A-4040 Linz (Austria)

2015-09-30

Aluminum doped ZnO (AZO) and pure ZnO thin films are grown on polymer substrates by pulsed-laser deposition and the optical, electrical, and structural film properties are investigated. Laser fluence, substrate temperature, and oxygen pressure are varied to obtain transparent, conductive, and stoichiometric AZO layers on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) that are free of cracks. At low fluence (1 J/cm{sup 2}) and low pressure (10{sup −3} mbar), AZO/PET samples of high optical transmission in the visible range, low electrical sheet resistance, and high figure of merit (FOM) are produced. AZO films on fluorinated ethylene propylene have low FOM. The AZO films on PET substrates are used as electron transport layer in inverted organic solar cell devices employing P3HT:PCBM as photovoltaic polymer-fullerene bulk heterojunction. - Highlights: • Aluminum doped and pure ZnO thin films are grown on polyethylene terephthalate. • Growth parameters laser fluence, temperature, and gas pressure are optimized. • AZO films on PET have high optical transmission and electrical conductance (FOM). • Organic solar cells on PET using AZO as electron transport layer are made. • Power conversion efficiency of these OSC devices is measured.

Highly transparent and conductive double-layer oxide thin films as anodes for organic light-emitting diodes

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Yang Yu; Wang Lian; Yan He; Jin Shu; Marks, Tobin J.; Li Shuyou

2006-01-01

Double-layer transparent conducting oxide thin film structures containing In-doped CdO (CIO) and Sn-doped In 2 O 3 (ITO) layers were grown on glass by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition and ion-assisted deposition (IAD), respectively, and used as anodes for polymer light-emitting diodes (PLEDs). These films have a very low overall In content of 16 at. %. For 180-nm-thick CIO/ITO films, the sheet resistance is 5.6 Ω/□, and the average optical transmittance is 87.1% in the 400-700 nm region. The overall figure of merit (Φ=T 10 /R sheet ) of the double-layer CIO/ITO films is significantly greater than that of single-layer CIO, IAD-ITO, and commercial ITO films. CIO/ITO-based PLEDs exhibit comparable or superior device performance versus ITO-based control devices. CIO/ITO materials have a much lower sheet resistance than ITO, rendering them promising low In content electrode materials for large-area optoelectronic devices

Atomic mapping of Ruddlesden-Popper faults in transparent conducting BaSnO3-based thin films.

Science.gov (United States)

Wang, W Y; Tang, Y L; Zhu, Y L; Suriyaprakash, J; Xu, Y B; Liu, Y; Gao, B; Cheong, S-W; Ma, X L

2015-11-03

Doped BaSnO3 has arisen many interests recently as one of the promising transparent conducting oxides for future applications. Understanding the microstructural characteristics are crucial for the exploration of relevant devices. In this paper, we investigated the microstructural features of 0.001% La doped BaSnO3 thin film using both conventional and aberration corrected transmission electron microscopes. Contrast analysis shows high densities of Ruddlesden-Popper faults in the film, which are on {100} planes with translational displacements of 1/2a  . Atomic EELS element mappings reveal that the Ruddlesden-Popper faults are Ba-O layer terminated, and two kinds of kink structures at the Ruddlesden-Popper faults with different element distributions are also demonstrated. Quantitative analysis on lattice distortions of the Ruddlesden-Popper faults illustrates that the local lattice spacing poses a huge increment of 36%, indicating that large strains exist around the Ruddlesden-Popper faults in the film.

Origin of high photoconductive gain in fully transparent heterojunction nanocrystalline oxide image sensors and interconnects.

Science.gov (United States)

Jeon, Sanghun; Song, Ihun; Lee, Sungsik; Ryu, Byungki; Ahn, Seung-Eon; Lee, Eunha; Kim, Young; Nathan, Arokia; Robertson, John; Chung, U-In

2014-11-05

A technique for invisible image capture using a photosensor array based on transparent conducting oxide semiconductor thin-film transistors and transparent interconnection technologies is presented. A transparent conducting layer is employed for the sensor electrodes as well as interconnection in the array, providing about 80% transmittance at visible-light wavelengths. The phototransistor is a Hf-In-Zn-O/In-Zn-O heterostructure yielding a high quantum-efficiency in the visible range. © 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

2011 Annual Health Physics Report for the HEU transparency Program

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Radev, R.

2012-01-01

During the 2008 calendar year, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) provided health physics support for the Highly Enriched Uranium (HEU) Transparency Program for external and internal radiation protection. They also provided technical expertise related to BDMS radioactive sources and Russian radiation safety regulatory compliance. For the calendar year 2008, there were 158 person-trips that required dose monitoring of the U.S. monitors. Of the 158 person-trips, 148 person-trips were SMVs and 10 person-trips were Transparency Monitoring Office (TMO) trips. There were 6 monitoring visits by TMO monitors to facilities other than UEIE and 8 to UEIE itself. There were three monitoring visits (source changes) that were back-to-back with a total of 24 monitors. LLNL's Hazard Control Department laboratories provided the dosimetry services for the HEU Transparency monitors. In 2008, the HEU Transparency activities in Russia were conducted in a radiologically safe manner for the HEU Transparency monitors in accordance with the expectations of the HEU Transparency staff, NNSA and DOE. The HEU Transparency now has thirteen years of successful experience in developing and providing health and safety support in meeting its technical objectives.

Scalable Coating and Properties of Transparent, Flexible, Silver Nanowire Electrodes

KAUST Repository

Hu, Liangbing

2010-05-25

We report a comprehensive study of transparent and conductive silver nanowire (Ag NW) electrodes, including a scalable fabrication process, morphologies, and optical, mechanical adhesion, and flexibility properties, and various routes to improve the performance. We utilized a synthesis specifically designed for long and thin wires for improved performance in terms of sheet resistance and optical transmittance. Twenty Ω/sq and ∼ 80% specular transmittance, and 8 ohms/sq and 80% diffusive transmittance in the visible range are achieved, which fall in the same range as the best indium tin oxide (ITO) samples on plastic substrates for flexible electronics and solar cells. The Ag NW electrodes show optical transparencies superior to ITO for near-infrared wavelengths (2-fold higher transmission). Owing to light scattering effects, the Ag NW network has the largest difference between diffusive transmittance and specular transmittance when compared with ITO and carbon nanotube electrodes, a property which could greatly enhance solar cell performance. A mechanical study shows that Ag NW electrodes on flexible substrates show excellent robustness when subjected to bending. We also study the electrical conductance of Ag nanowires and their junctions and report a facile electrochemical method for a Au coating to reduce the wire-to-wire junction resistance for better overall film conductance. Simple mechanical pressing was also found to increase the NW film conductance due to the reduction of junction resistance. The overall properties of transparent Ag NW electrodes meet the requirements of transparent electrodes for many applications and could be an immediate ITO replacement for flexible electronics and solar cells. © 2010 American Chemical Society.

Scalable Coating and Properties of Transparent, Flexible, Silver Nanowire Electrodes

KAUST Repository

Hu, Liangbing; Kim, Han Sun; Lee, Jung-Yong; Peumans, Peter; Cui, Yi

2010-01-01

We report a comprehensive study of transparent and conductive silver nanowire (Ag NW) electrodes, including a scalable fabrication process, morphologies, and optical, mechanical adhesion, and flexibility properties, and various routes to improve the performance. We utilized a synthesis specifically designed for long and thin wires for improved performance in terms of sheet resistance and optical transmittance. Twenty Ω/sq and ∼ 80% specular transmittance, and 8 ohms/sq and 80% diffusive transmittance in the visible range are achieved, which fall in the same range as the best indium tin oxide (ITO) samples on plastic substrates for flexible electronics and solar cells. The Ag NW electrodes show optical transparencies superior to ITO for near-infrared wavelengths (2-fold higher transmission). Owing to light scattering effects, the Ag NW network has the largest difference between diffusive transmittance and specular transmittance when compared with ITO and carbon nanotube electrodes, a property which could greatly enhance solar cell performance. A mechanical study shows that Ag NW electrodes on flexible substrates show excellent robustness when subjected to bending. We also study the electrical conductance of Ag nanowires and their junctions and report a facile electrochemical method for a Au coating to reduce the wire-to-wire junction resistance for better overall film conductance. Simple mechanical pressing was also found to increase the NW film conductance due to the reduction of junction resistance. The overall properties of transparent Ag NW electrodes meet the requirements of transparent electrodes for many applications and could be an immediate ITO replacement for flexible electronics and solar cells. © 2010 American Chemical Society.

Transparent lithium-ion batteries

KAUST Repository

Yang, Y.

2011-07-25

Transparent devices have recently attracted substantial attention. Various applications have been demonstrated, including displays, touch screens, and solar cells; however, transparent batteries, a key component in fully integrated transparent devices, have not yet been reported. As battery electrode materials are not transparent and have to be thick enough to store energy, the traditional approach of using thin films for transparent devices is not suitable. Here we demonstrate a grid-structured electrode to solve this dilemma, which is fabricated by a microfluidics-assisted method. The feature dimension in the electrode is below the resolution limit of human eyes, and, thus, the electrode appears transparent. Moreover, by aligning multiple electrodes together, the amount of energy stored increases readily without sacrificing the transparency. This results in a battery with energy density of 10 Wh/L at a transparency of 60%. The device is also flexible, further broadening their potential applications. The transparent device configuration also allows in situ Raman study of fundamental electrochemical reactions in batteries.

Transparent lithium-ion batteries

Science.gov (United States)

Yang, Yuan; Jeong, Sangmoo; Hu, Liangbing; Wu, Hui; Lee, Seok Woo; Cui, Yi

2011-01-01

Transparent devices have recently attracted substantial attention. Various applications have been demonstrated, including displays, touch screens, and solar cells; however, transparent batteries, a key component in fully integrated transparent devices, have not yet been reported. As battery electrode materials are not transparent and have to be thick enough to store energy, the traditional approach of using thin films for transparent devices is not suitable. Here we demonstrate a grid-structured electrode to solve this dilemma, which is fabricated by a microfluidics-assisted method. The feature dimension in the electrode is below the resolution limit of human eyes, and, thus, the electrode appears transparent. Moreover, by aligning multiple electrodes together, the amount of energy stored increases readily without sacrificing the transparency. This results in a battery with energy density of 10 Wh/L at a transparency of 60%. The device is also flexible, further broadening their potential applications. The transparent device configuration also allows in situ Raman study of fundamental electrochemical reactions in batteries. PMID:21788483

Enhanced light extraction of GaN-based light-emitting diodes with periodic textured SiO2 on Al-doped ZnO transparent conductive layer

Science.gov (United States)

Yu, Zhao; Bingfeng, Fan; Yiting, Chen; Yi, Zhuo; Zhoujun, Pang; Zhen, Liu; Gang, Wang

2016-07-01

We report an effective enhancement in light extraction of GaN-based light-emitting diodes (LEDs) with an Al-doped ZnO (AZO) transparent conductive layer by incorporating a top regular textured SiO2 layer. The 2 inch transparent through-pore anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membrane was fabricated and used as the etching mask. The periodic pore with a pitch of about 410 nm was successfully transferred to the surface of the SiO2 layer without any etching damages to the AZO layer and the electrodes. The light output power was enhanced by 19% at 20 mA and 56% at 100 mA compared to that of the planar LEDs without a patterned surface. This approach offers a technique to fabricate a low-cost and large-area regular pattern on the LED chip for achieving enhanced light extraction without an obvious increase of the forward voltage. ).

Enhanced light extraction of GaN-based light-emitting diodes with periodic textured SiO2 on Al-doped ZnO transparent conductive layer

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Zhao Yu; Fan Bingfeng; Chen Yiting; Zhuo Yi; Wang Gang; Pang Zhoujun; Liu Zhen

2016-01-01

We report an effective enhancement in light extraction of GaN-based light-emitting diodes (LEDs) with an Al-doped ZnO (AZO) transparent conductive layer by incorporating a top regular textured SiO 2 layer. The 2 inch transparent through-pore anodic aluminum oxide (AAO) membrane was fabricated and used as the etching mask. The periodic pore with a pitch of about 410 nm was successfully transferred to the surface of the SiO 2 layer without any etching damages to the AZO layer and the electrodes. The light output power was enhanced by 19% at 20 mA and 56% at 100 mA compared to that of the planar LEDs without a patterned surface. This approach offers a technique to fabricate a low-cost and large-area regular pattern on the LED chip for achieving enhanced light extraction without an obvious increase of the forward voltage. (paper)

TRANSPARENT CONCRETE

OpenAIRE

Sandeep Sharma*, Dr. O.P. Reddy

2017-01-01

Transparent concrete is the new type of concrete introduced in todays world which carries special property of light transmitting due to presence of light Optical fibres. Which is also known as translucent concrete or light transmitting concrete, it is achieved by replacing coarse aggregates with transparent alternate materials (Optical fibres). The binding material in transparent concrete may be able to transmit light by using clear resins the concrete mix. The concrete used in industry in pr...

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

Science.gov (United States)

Nam, Sanggil; Song, Myungkwan; Kim, Dong-Ho; Cho, Byungjin; Lee, Hye Moon; Kwon, Jung-Dae; Park, Sung-Gyu; Nam, Kee-Seok; Jeong, Yongsoo; Kwon, Se-Hun; Park, Yun Chang; Jin, Sung-Ho; Kang, Jae-Wook; Jo, Sungjin; Kim, Chang Su

2014-04-25

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.

Synthesis of silver nanowires using hydrothermal technique for flexible transparent electrode application

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Vijila, C. V. Mary; Rahman, K. K. Arsina; Parvathy, N. S.; Jayaraj, M. K., E-mail: mkj@cusat.ac.in [Nanophotonic and Optoelectronic Division, Dept. of Physics, Cochin University of Science and Technology, Kochi, Kerala (India)

2016-05-23

Transparent conducting films are becoming increasingly interesting because of their applications in electronics industry such as their use in solar energy applications. In this work silver nanowires were synthesized using solvothermal method by reducing silver nitrate and adding sodium chloride for assembling silver into nanowires. Absorption spectra of nanowires in the form of a dispersion in deionized water, AFM and SEM images confirm the nanowire formation. Solution of nanowire was coated over PET films to obtain transparent conducting films.

Development of high-performance transparent conducting oxides and their impact on the performance of CdS/CdTe solar cells

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Coutts, T.J.; Wu, X.; Sheldon, P.; Rose, D.H. [National Renewable Energy Lab., Golden, CO (United States)

1998-09-01

This paper begins with a review of the modeled performance of transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) as a function of their free-carrier concentration, mobility, and film thickness. It is shown that it is vital to make a film with high mobility to minimize the width and height of the free-carrier absorption band, and to optimize the optical properties. The free-carrier concentration must be kept sufficiently small that the absorption band does not extend into that part of the spectrum to which the solar cell responds. Despite this consideration, a high electrical conductivity is essential to minimize series resistance losses. Hence, a high mobility is vital for these materials. The fabrication of thin-films of cadmium stannate is then discussed, and their performance is compared with that of tin oxide, both optically and as these materials influence the performance of CdTe solar cells.

Making structured metals transparent for ultrabroadband electromagnetic waves and acoustic waves

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Fan, Ren-Hao; Peng, Ru-Wen; Huang, Xian-Rong; Wang, Mu

2015-01-01

In this review, we present our recent work on making structured metals transparent for broadband electromagnetic waves and acoustic waves via excitation of surface waves. First, we theoretically show that one-dimensional metallic gratings can become transparent and completely antireflective for extremely broadband electromagnetic waves by relying on surface plasmons or spoof surface plasmons. Second, we experimentally demonstrate that metallic gratings with narrow slits are highly transparent for broadband terahertz waves at oblique incidence and high transmission efficiency is insensitive to the metal thickness. Further, we significantly develop oblique metal gratings transparent for broadband electromagnetic waves (including optical waves and terahertz ones) under normal incidence. In the third, we find the principles of broadband transparency for structured metals can be extended from one-dimensional metallic gratings to two-dimensional cases. Moreover, similar phenomena are found in sonic artificially metallic structures, which present the transparency for broadband acoustic waves. These investigations provide guidelines to develop many novel materials and devices, such as transparent conducting panels, antireflective solar cells, and other broadband metamaterials and stealth technologies. - Highlights: • Making structured metals transparent for ultrabroadband electromagnetic waves. • Non-resonant excitation of surface plasmons or spoof surface plasmons. • Sonic artificially metallic structures transparent for broadband acoustic waves

Making structured metals transparent for ultrabroadband electromagnetic waves and acoustic waves

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Fan, Ren-Hao [National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures and School of Physics, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China); Peng, Ru-Wen, E-mail: rwpeng@nju.edu.cn [National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures and School of Physics, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China); Huang, Xian-Rong [Advanced Photon Source, Argonne National Laboratory, Argonne, IL 60439 (United States); Wang, Mu [National Laboratory of Solid State Microstructures and School of Physics, Collaborative Innovation Center of Advanced Microstructures, Nanjing University, Nanjing 210093 (China)

2015-07-15

In this review, we present our recent work on making structured metals transparent for broadband electromagnetic waves and acoustic waves via excitation of surface waves. First, we theoretically show that one-dimensional metallic gratings can become transparent and completely antireflective for extremely broadband electromagnetic waves by relying on surface plasmons or spoof surface plasmons. Second, we experimentally demonstrate that metallic gratings with narrow slits are highly transparent for broadband terahertz waves at oblique incidence and high transmission efficiency is insensitive to the metal thickness. Further, we significantly develop oblique metal gratings transparent for broadband electromagnetic waves (including optical waves and terahertz ones) under normal incidence. In the third, we find the principles of broadband transparency for structured metals can be extended from one-dimensional metallic gratings to two-dimensional cases. Moreover, similar phenomena are found in sonic artificially metallic structures, which present the transparency for broadband acoustic waves. These investigations provide guidelines to develop many novel materials and devices, such as transparent conducting panels, antireflective solar cells, and other broadband metamaterials and stealth technologies. - Highlights: • Making structured metals transparent for ultrabroadband electromagnetic waves. • Non-resonant excitation of surface plasmons or spoof surface plasmons. • Sonic artificially metallic structures transparent for broadband acoustic waves.

Continuous, Highly Flexible, and Transparent Graphene Films by Chemical Vapor Deposition for Organic Photovoltaics

KAUST Repository

Gomez De Arco, Lewis; Zhang, Yi; Schlenker, Cody W.; Ryu, Koungmin; Thompson, Mark E.; Zhou, Chongwu

2010-01-01

We report the implementation of continuous, highly flexible, and transparent graphene films obtained by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) as transparent conductive electrodes (TCE) in organic photovoltaic cells. Graphene films were synthesized by CVD

Transparency in Canadian public drug advisory committees.

Science.gov (United States)

Rosenberg-Yunger, Zahava R S; Bayoumi, Ahmed M

2014-11-01

Transparency in health care resource allocation decisions is a criterion of a fair process. We used qualitative methods to explore transparency across 11 Canadian drug advisory committees. We developed seven criteria to assess transparency (disclosure of members' names, disclosure of membership selection criteria, disclosure of conflict of interest guidelines and members' conflicts, public posting of decisions not to fund drugs, public posting of rationales for decisions, stakeholder input, and presence of an appeals mechanism) and two sub-criteria for when rationales were posted (direct website link and readability). We interviewed a purposeful sample of key informants who were conversant in English and a current or past member of either a committee or a stakeholder group. We analyzed data using a thematic approach. Interviewing continued until saturation was reached. We examined documents from 10 committees and conducted 27 interviews. The median number of criteria addressed by committees was 2 (range 0-6). Major interview themes included addressing: (1) accessibility issues, including stakeholders' degree of access to the decision making process and appeal mechanisms; (2) communication issues, including improving internal and external communication and public access to information; and (3) confidentiality issues, including the use of proprietary evidence. Most committees have some mechanisms to address transparency but none had a fully transparent process. The most important ways to improve transparency include creating formal appeal mechanisms, improving communication, and establishing consistent rules about the use of, and public access to, proprietary evidence. Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.

The art of transparency.

Science.gov (United States)

Sayim, Bilge; Cavanagh, Patrick

2011-01-01

Artists throughout the ages have discovered a number of techniques to depict transparency. With only a few exceptions, these techniques follow closely the properties of physical transparency. The two best known properties are X-junctions and the luminance relations described by Metelli. X-junctions are seen where the contours of a transparent material cross contours of the surface behind; Metelli's constraints on the luminance relations between the direct and filtered portions of the surface specify a range of luminance values that are consistent with transparency. These principles have been used by artists since the time of ancient Egypt. However, artists also discovered that stimuli can be seen as transparent even when these physical constraints are not met. Ancient Greek artists, for example, were able to depict transparent materials in simple black-and-white line drawings. Artists also learned how to represent transparency in cases where neither X-junctions nor Metelli's constraints could apply: for example, where no portions of the objects behind the transparent material extend beyond it. Many painters convincingly portrayed transparency in these cases by depicting the effects the transparent medium would have on material or object properties. Here, we show how artists employed these and other techniques revealing their anticipation of current formalizations of perceived transparency, and we suggest new, as-yet-untested principles.

Organic Light-Emitting Diodes on Solution-Processed Graphene Transparent Electrodes

KAUST Repository

Wu, Junbo

2010-01-26

Theoretical estimates indicate that graphene thin films can be used as transparent electrodes for thin-film devices such as solar cells and organic light-emitting diodes, with an unmatched combination of sheet resistance and transparency. We demonstrate organic light-emitting diodes with solution-processed graphene thin film transparent conductive anodes. The graphene electrodes were deposited on quartz substrates by spincoating of an aqueous dispersion of functionalized graphene, followed by a vacuum anneal step to reduce the sheet resistance. Small molecular weight organic materials and a metal cathode were directly deposited on the graphene anodes, resulting in devices with a performance comparable to control devices on indium-tin-oxide transparent anodes. The outcoupling efficiency of devices on graphene and indium-tin-oxide is nearly identical, in agreement with model predictions. © 2010 American Chemical Society.

Medical regulation, spectacular transparency and the blame business.

Science.gov (United States)

McGivern, Gerry; Fischer, Michael

2010-01-01

The purpose of this paper is to explore general practitioners' (GPs') and psychiatrists' views and experiences of transparent forms of medical regulation in practice, as well as those of medical regulators and those representing patients and professionals. The research included interviews with GPs, psychiatrists and others involved in medical regulation, representing patients and professionals. A qualitative narrative analysis of the interviews was then conducted. Narratives suggest rising levels of complaints, legalisation and blame within the National Health Service (NHS). Three key themes emerge. First, doctors feel "guilty until proven innocent" within increasingly legalised regulatory systems and are consequently practising more defensively. Second, regulation is described as providing "spectacular transparency", driven by political responses to high profile scandals rather than its effects in practice, which can be seen as a social defence. Finally, it is suggested that a "blame business" is driving this form of transparency, in which self-interested regulators, the media, lawyers, and even some patient organisations are fuelling transparency in a wider culture of blame. A relatively small number of people were interviewed, so further research testing the findings would be useful. Transparency has some perverse effects on doctors' practice. Rising levels of blame has perverse consequences for patient care, as doctors are practicing more defensively as a result, as well as significant financial implications for NHS funding. Transparent forms of regulation are assumed to be beneficial and yet little research has examined its effects in practice. In this paper we highlight a number of perverse effects of transparency in practice.

Peering into Transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Christensen, Lars Thøger; Cheney, George

and trustworthy knowledge about contemporary organizations, the transparency discourse has significant democratic potential. Yet, its most common operationalization – as information availability – reinstalls a “purified” notion of communication devoid of mystery, inaccuracy and misrepresentation. In this paper......The current emphasis on organizational and institutional transparency – driven by NGOs, inquisitive media, critical investors and other engaged stakeholders – signifies a growing demand for insight, clarity, participation and democracy. Holding the promise of improved access to valid......, we apply transparency to itself by unpacking its implicit model of communication and critiquing its ignorance towards the representative nature of current transparency practices. The critique unfolds the ambiguous nature of the transparency pursuit and demonstrates how its desire for insight, clarity...

Concentrator bifacial crystalline silicon solar cells with multi-wire metallization attached to TCO layers using transparent conductive polymers

Science.gov (United States)

Untila, Gennady; Chebotareva, Alla; Kost, Tatiana; Salazkin, Sergei; Shaposhnikova, Vera; Shvarts, Maxim

2017-09-01

Replacing expensive silver with inexpensive copper for the metallization of silicon wafer solar cells can lead to substantial reductions in material costs associated with cell production. A promising approach is the use of multi-wire design. This technology uses many wires in the place of busbars, and the copper wires are "soldered" during the low-temperature lamination process to the fingers (printed or plated) or to the transparent conductive oxide (TCO) layer, e.g. in the case of the α-Si/c-Si heterojunction cells. Here we describe a solar cell design in which wires are attached to TCO layers using transparent conductive polymer (TCP) films. To this end, we have synthesized a number of thermoplastics, poly(arylene ether ketone) copolymers (co-PAEKs), containing phthalide in their main chain. The fraction of phthalide-containing units in the copolymers was p = 3, 5, 15, and 50 mol %. With increasing p, the peak strain temperature of the co-PAEKs rises from 205 to 290 °C and their optical band gap and refractive index increase from 3.12 to 3.15 eV and from 1.6 to 1.614, respectively. The copolymers have a negligible absorption coefficient in the wavelength range 400- 1100 nm. When exposed to an excess pressure of 1 atm or above, co-PAEK films less than 30 µm in thickness undergo a transition from a dielectric to a conductive state. The resistivity (ρC) of wire/TCP/TCO (ITO = In2O3:Sn and IFO = In2O3:F) contacts ranges from 0.37 to 1.43 mΩ cm2. The polymer with the highest phthalide content (p = 50 mol %) has the lowest ρC. The average work of adhesion per unit area determined by pulling off the wires from the polymer surface depends on both the phthalide content of the co-PAEKs and their reduced viscosity, ranging from 14.3 to 43.5 N/cm. The highest value was obtained for the co-PAEK with p = 50 mol %. We have fabricated low-concentration bifacial IFO/(n+pp+)Cz-Si/ITO solar cells with a wire contact grid attached to IFO and ITO using a co-PAEK film. The

Metal{Polymer Hybrid Materials For Flexible Transparent Conductors

Science.gov (United States)

Narayanan, Sudarshan

The field of organic electronics, till recently a mere research topic, is currently making rapid strides and tremendous progress into entering the mainstream electronics industry with several applications and products such as OLED televisions, curved displays, wearable devices, flexible solar cells, etc. already having been commercialized. A major component in these devices, especially for photovoltaic applications, is a transparent conductor used as one of the electrodes, which in most commercial applications are highly doped wide bandgap semiconducting oxides also called Transparent Conducting Oxides (TCOs). However, TCOs exhibit inherent disadvantages such as limited supply, brittle mechanical properties, expensive processing that present major barriers for the more widespread economic use in applications such as exible transparent conductors, owing to which suitable alternative materials are being sought. In this context we present two approaches in realizing alternative TCs using metal-polymer hybrid materials, with high figures of merit that are easily processable, reasonably inexpensive and mechanically robust as well. In this context, our first approach employs laminated metal-polymer photonic bandgap structures to effectively tune optical and electrical properties by an appropriate design of the material stack, factoring in the effect of the materials involved, the number of layers and layer properties. We have found that in the case of a four-bilayer Au/polystyrene (AujPS) laminate structure, an enhancement in optical transmittance of ˜ 500% in comparison to a monolithic A film of equivalent thickness, can be achieved. The high conductivity (˜ 106 O--1cm--1) of the metallic component, Au in this case, also ensures planar conductivity; metallic inclusions in the dielectric polymer layer can in principle give rise to out-of-plane conductivity as well enabling a fully functional TC. Such materials also have immense potential for several other applications

High Transparent Metal Oxide / Polyimide Antistatic Coatings, Phase II

Data.gov (United States)

National Aeronautics and Space Administration — Through this Phase I program, Agiltron has successfully produced an innovative transparent conductive nanocomposite paint that holds the promise of meeting space...

Improved Long-Term Stability of Transparent Conducting Electrodes Based on Double-Laminated Electrosprayed Antimony Tin Oxides and Ag Nanowires

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Koo B.-R.

2017-06-01

Full Text Available We fabricated double-laminated antimony tin oxide/Ag nanowire electrodes by spin-coating and electrospraying. Compared to pure Ag nanowire electrodes and single-laminated antimony tin oxide/Ag nanowire electrodes, the double-laminated antimony tin oxide/Ag nanowire electrodes had superior transparent conducting electrode performances with sheet resistance ~19.8 Ω/□ and optical transmittance ~81.9%; this was due to uniform distribution of the connected Ag nanowires because of double lamination of the metallic Ag nanowires without Ag aggregation despite subsequent microwave heating at 250°C. They also exhibited excellent and superior long-term chemical and thermal stabilities and adhesion to substrate because double-laminated antimony tin oxide thin films act as the protective layers between Ag nanowires, blocking Ag atoms penetration.

The effect of Cu on the properties of CdO/Cu/CdO multilayer films for transparent conductive electrode applications

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Raaif, M.; Mohamed, S.H. [Sohag University, Physics Department, Faculty of Science, Sohag (Egypt)

2017-06-15

Transparent conductive CdO/Cu/CdO multilayer films were prepared using rf plasma magnetron sputtering and electron beam evaporation techniques. The CdO layers were prepared using rf plasma magnetron sputtering, while the Cu interlayer was prepared by electron beam evaporation technique. The Cu layer thickness was varied between 1 and 10 nm. The structural and optical properties as well as the sheet resistance of the multilayer films were studied. X-ray diffraction measurements revealed the presence of cubic CdO structure and the Cu peak was only observed for the multilayers prepared with 10 nm of Cu. It has been observed that the Cu interlayer thickness has a great influence on the optical and electrical properties of the multilayers. The transmittance of the multilayer films decreased while the reflectance increased with increasing Cu interlayer thickness. The refractive index and the extinction coefficient of the multilayer films were calculated. The estimated optical band gap values were found to be decreased from 2.75 ± 0.02 to 2.40 ± 0.02 eV as the Cu interlayer thickness increased from 1 to 10 nm. The sheet resistance was sensitive to the Cu interlayer thickness and it decreased with increasing Cu interlayer thickness. A sheet resistSSance of 21.7 Ω/sq, an average transmittance (between 700 and 1000 nm) of 77%, and an optical band gap of 2.5 ± 0.02 eV were estimated for the multilayer film with 2 nm Cu layer. The multilayer film with 2 nm Cu layer has the highest figure of merit value of 3.2 x 10{sup -3} Ω{sup -1}. This indicates that the properties of this multilayer film are suitable for transparent conductive electrode applications. (orig.)

The Effect of Annealing on Nanothick Indium Tin Oxide Transparent Conductive Films for Touch Sensors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Shih-Hao Chan

2015-01-01

Full Text Available This study aims to discuss the sheet resistance of ultrathin indium tin oxide (ITO transparent conductive films during the postannealing treatment. The thickness of the ultrathin ITO films is 20 nm. They are prepared on B270 glass substrates at room temperature by a direct-current pulsed magnetron sputtering system. Ultrathin ITO films with high sheet resistance are commonly used for touch panel applications. As the annealing temperature is increased, the structure of the ultrathin ITO film changes from amorphous to polycrystalline. The crystalline of ultrathin ITO films becomes stronger with an increase of annealing temperature, which further leads to the effect of enhanced Hall mobility. A postannealing treatment in an atmosphere can enhance the optical transmittance owing to the filling of oxygen vacancies, but the sheet resistance rises sharply. However, a higher annealing temperature, above 250°C, results in a decrease in the sheet resistance of ultrathin ITO films, because more Sn ions become an effective dopant. An optimum sheet resistance of 336 Ω/sqr was obtained for ultrathin ITO films at 400°C with an average optical transmittance of 86.8% for touch sensor applications.

Circularly Polarized Transparent Microstrip Patch Reflectarray Integrated with Solar Cell for Satellite Applications

OpenAIRE

Zainud-Deen, S. H.; El-Shalaby, N. A.; Gaber, S. M.; Malhat, H. A.

2016-01-01

Circularly polarized (CP) transparent microstrip reflectarray antenna is integrated with solar cell for small satellite applications at 10 GHz. The reflectarray unit cell consists of a perfect electric conductor (PEC) square patch printed on an optically transparent substrate with the PEC ground plane. A comparison between using transparent conducting polymers and using the PEC in unit-cell construction has been introduced. The waveguide simulator is used to calculate the required compensatio...

Solution-processed highly conductive PEDOT:PSS/AgNW/GO transparent film for efficient organic-Si hybrid solar cells.

Science.gov (United States)

Xu, Qiaojing; Song, Tao; Cui, Wei; Liu, Yuqiang; Xu, Weidong; Lee, Shuit-Tong; Sun, Baoquan

2015-02-11

Hybrid solar cells based on n-Si/poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene- sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) heterojunction promise to be a low cost photovoltaic technology by using simple device structure and easy fabrication process. However, due to the low conductivity of PEDOT:PSS, a metal grid deposited by vacuum evaporation method is still required to enhance the charge collection efficiency, which complicates the device fabrication process. Here, a solution-processed graphene oxide (GO)-welded silver nanowires (AgNWs) transparent conductive electrode (TCE) was employed to replace the vacuum deposited metal grid. A unique "sandwich" structure was developed by embedding an AgNW network between PEDOT:PSS and GO with a figure-of-merit of 8.6×10(-3) Ω(-1), which was even higher than that of sputtered indium tin oxide electrode (6.6×10(-3) Ω(-1)). A champion power conversion efficiency of 13.3% was achieved, because of the decreased series resistance of the TCEs as well as the enhanced built-in potential (Vbi) in the hybrid solar cells. The TCEs were obtained by facile low-temperature solution process method, which was compatible with cost-effective mass production technology.

Highly transparent conductive AZO/Zr50Cu50/AZO films in wide range of visible and near infrared wavelength grown by pulsed laser deposition

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jingyun Cheng

Full Text Available Novel AZO/Zr50Cu50/AZO tri-layer transparent conductive films with excellent transmittance in both visible and near infrared region were successfully prepared by pulsed laser deposition on glass substrates. The electrical and optical properties were investigated at various Zr50Cu50 thicknesses. As the AZO thickness was fixed at 50 nm and Zr50Cu50 thickness was varied between 1 and 18 nm, it was found that AZO (50 nm/Zr50Cu50/AZO (50 nm tri-layer films exhibited good conductivity and high transmittance in both visible and near infrared wavelength. Additionally, both the electrical and optical properties of AZO (50 nm/Zr50Cu50 (2 nm/AZO (50 nm tri-layer films were found to be sensitive to the growth temperature. In this work, the lowest sheet resistance (43 Ω/□ and relatively high transmittance (∼80% in the range of 400–2000 nm were achieved while the growth temperature was 350 °C. Furthermore, the AZO (50 nm/Zr50Cu50 (2 nm/AZO (50 nm thin film deposited at 350 °C exhibits the highest figure of merit of 1.42 × 10−3 Ω−1, indicating that the multilayer is promising for coated glasses and thin film solar cells. Keywords: Transparent conductive oxide, AZO, Zr50Cu50, Electrical and optical properties, Visible and near infrared transmittance

A study on enhancing policy transparency in the nuclear field

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Cheon, S. W. [Korea Institute for National Unification, Seoul (Korea)

2000-11-01

Enhancing transparency in the nuclear field is a pending issue for the South Korea's nuclear community. International suspicions and mistrust of ROK's nuclear activities have been obstacles to the developments of South Korea's nuclear industry. South Korea's efforts have not been sufficient enough to ensure international community that its nuclear program will be used solely for peaceful purposes. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to conduct a positive and creative research on the issue of transparency and provide policy options that are conducive to developing of South Korea's nuclear industry. Based on an in-depth study on transparency of national policies, this study presents a package of detail policy measures that can contribute to enhancing transparency in the nuclear filed. 75 refs., 2 tabs. (Author)

Transparency views by media

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ikawa, Y.

2007-01-01

In this presentation, various problems surrounding the issues of transparency, such as 'What exactly should be transparent?' 'Is all that we want amounting only to transparency?' 'Is it possible to thoroughly implement transparency', etc., are discussed with due consideration for the viewpoints of the wide range of parties concerned involving areas of politics, administration, enterprises, media, individuals, and so on. First of all, the explanation is focused on how the transparency is recognised, as well as how it is regarded as important, for the public at large and the media. Then, based on the concept that transparency is required for what cannot be justified to be secret, we will contemplate what should be transparent in the areas of politics, administration and enterprises, using the case of nuclear issues as example. Next, the discussion will proceed to the point whether the achievement of transparency itself should be the ultimate goal, in the light of taking into consideration the standpoints of individuals and the receivers of the information, in addition to that of the administration, politics, and enterprises. In closing, we will discuss what the necessary measures will be to materialize the complete transparency on the basis of the discussions made thus far. (author)

ITO nanoparticles reused from ITO scraps and their applications to sputtering target for transparent conductive electrode layer.

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Sung-Jei; Song, Sang-Hyun; Kim, Byeong Jun; Lee, Jae-Yong; Kim, Young-Sung

2017-01-01

In this study, ITO nanoparticles (ITO-NPs) were reused from ITO target scraps to synthesize low cost ITO-NPs and to apply to make sputtering target for transparent conductive electrodes (TCEs). By controlling heat-treatment temperature as 980 °C, we achieved reused ITO-NPs having Brunauer, Emmett and Teller specific surface area (BET SSA) and average particle size 8.05 m 2 /g and 103.8 nm, respectively. The BET SSA decreases along with increasing heat-treatment temperature. The ITO-NPs were grown as round mound shape, and highly crystallized to (222) preferred orientations. Also, applying the reused ITO-NPs, we achieved an ITO target of which density was 99.6%. Using the ITO target, we achieved high quality TCE layer of which sheet resistance and optical transmittance at 550 nm were 29.5 Ω/sq. and 82.3%. Thus, it was confirmed that the reused ITO-NPs was feasible to sputtering target for TCEs layer.

ITO nanoparticles reused from ITO scraps and their applications to sputtering target for transparent conductive electrode layer

Science.gov (United States)

Hong, Sung-Jei; Song, Sang-Hyun; Kim, Byeong Jun; Lee, Jae-Yong; Kim, Young-Sung

2017-09-01

In this study, ITO nanoparticles (ITO-NPs) were reused from ITO target scraps to synthesize low cost ITO-NPs and to apply to make sputtering target for transparent conductive electrodes (TCEs). By controlling heat-treatment temperature as 980 °C, we achieved reused ITO-NPs having Brunauer, Emmett and Teller specific surface area (BET SSA) and average particle size 8.05 m2/g and 103.8 nm, respectively. The BET SSA decreases along with increasing heat-treatment temperature. The ITO-NPs were grown as round mound shape, and highly crystallized to (222) preferred orientations. Also, applying the reused ITO-NPs, we achieved an ITO target of which density was 99.6%. Using the ITO target, we achieved high quality TCE layer of which sheet resistance and optical transmittance at 550 nm were 29.5 Ω/sq. and 82.3%. Thus, it was confirmed that the reused ITO-NPs was feasible to sputtering target for TCEs layer.

Transparent lithium-ion batteries

KAUST Repository

Yang, Y.; Jeong, S.; Hu, L.; Wu, H.; Lee, S. W.; Cui, Y.

2011-01-01

Transparent devices have recently attracted substantial attention. Various applications have been demonstrated, including displays, touch screens, and solar cells; however, transparent batteries, a key component in fully integrated transparent

The transparency trap.

Science.gov (United States)

Bernstein, Ethan

2014-10-01

To promote accountability, productivity, and shared learning, many organizations create open work environments and gather reams of data on how individuals spend their time. A few years ago, HBS professor Ethan Bernstein set out to find empirical evidence that such approaches improve organizational performance. What he discovered is that this kind of transparency often has an unintended consequence: It can leave employees feeling vulnerable and exposed. When that happens, they conceal any conduct that deviates from the norm so that they won't have to explain it. Unrehearsed, experimental behaviors sometimes stop altogether. But Bernstein also discovered organizations that had established zones of privacy within open environments by setting four types of boundaries: around teams, between feedback and evaluation, between decision rights and improvement rights, and around periods of experimentation. Moreover, across several studies, the companies that had done all this were the ones that consistently got the most creative, efficient, and thoughtful work from their employees. Bernstein's conclusion? By balancing transparency and privacy, organizations can capture the benefits of both, and encourage just the right amount of "positive deviance" needed to increase innovation and productivity.

A single-source precursor route to anisotropic halogen-doped zinc oxide particles as a promising candidate for new transparent conducting oxide materials

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Daniela Lehr

2015-11-01

Full Text Available Numerous applications in optoelectronics require electrically conducting materials with high optical transparency over the entire visible light range. A solid solution of indium oxide and substantial amounts of tin oxide for electronic doping (ITO is currently the most prominent example for the class of so-called TCOs (transparent conducting oxides. Due to the limited, natural occurrence of indium and its steadily increasing price, it is highly desired to identify materials alternatives containing highly abundant chemical elements. The doping of other metal oxides (e.g., zinc oxide, ZnO is a promising approach, but two problems can be identified. Phase separation might occur at the required high concentration of the doping element, and for successful electronic modification it is mandatory that the introduced heteroelement occupies a defined position in the lattice of the host material. In the case of ZnO, most attention has been attributed so far to n-doping via substitution of Zn2+ by other metals (e.g., Al3+. Here, we present first steps towards n-doped ZnO-based TCO materials via substitution in the anion lattice (O2− versus halogenides. A special approach is presented, using novel single-source precursors containing a potential excerpt of the target lattice 'HalZn·Zn3O3' preorganized on the molecular scale (Hal = I, Br, Cl. We report about the synthesis of the precursors, their transformation into halogene-containing ZnO materials, and finally structural, optical and electronic properties are investigated using a combination of techniques including FT-Raman, low-T photoluminescence, impedance and THz spectroscopies.

Development of transparent conductive indium and fluorine co-doped ZnO thin films: Effect of F concentration and post-annealing temperature

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Hadri, A. [University Mohammed V, Faculty of Sciences, Physics Department, LPM, B.P. 1014, Rabat (Morocco); Taibi, M. [University of Mohammed V, LPCMIN, Ecole Normale Superieure, Rabat (Morocco); Loghmarti, M.; Nassiri, C.; Slimani Tlemçani, T. [University Mohammed V, Faculty of Sciences, Physics Department, LPM, B.P. 1014, Rabat (Morocco); Mzerd, A., E-mail: mzerd@yahoo.fr [University Mohammed V, Faculty of Sciences, Physics Department, LPM, B.P. 1014, Rabat (Morocco)

2016-02-29

In the present work ZnO, In doped ZnO and In-F co-doped ZnO (IFZO) films were synthesized on heated glass substrates (350 °C) by the chemical spray technique. The effect of fluorine concentration on the structural, morphological, optical and electrical properties was studied. It was observed from X-ray diffraction (XRD) that the films have a polycrystalline structure and the intensity of the peaks depend on the doping and co-doping concentration. No diffraction peak related to dopants in XRD patterns along with shift in peaks angles to ZnO proved that In and F ions were doped into ZnO thin films. The Raman spectra confirm the hexagonal structure of the as-deposited films, and demonstrated an enhancement of the surface phonon mode of doped and co-doped films as compared to undoped films. The as-deposited films showed an average transmittance above 70%, in the wavelength range of 400–800 nm. A minimum electrical resistivity, in the order of 5.2 × 10{sup −} {sup 2} Ω cm was obtained for the IFZO thin film with 5 at.% F doping. Moreover, the electrical properties of doped and co-doped films were enhanced after post-deposition annealing. It was found that post-annealed thin films at 350 °C showed a decrease of one order of magnitude of the resistivity values. Such a transparent and conducting thin film can be suitable for optical and electrical applications owing to their low resistivity combined with high transmittance in the visible range. - Highlights: • Conductive transparent ZnO, IZO, IFZO thin films were deposited by spray pyrolysis. • Doping and co-doping affect morphology and optoelectrical properties. • As deposited film with high fluorine content exhibited high carrier mobility (55 cm{sup 2} V{sup −} {sup 1} s{sup −} {sup 1}). • Correlation between intrinsic defects and carrier mobility was observed. • Post-annealing in Ar atmosphere improves conductivity.

Structural and physical properties of transparent conducting, amorphous Zn-doped SnO2 films

Science.gov (United States)

Zhu, Q.; Ma, Q.; Buchholz, D. B.; Chang, R. P. H.; Bedzyk, M. J.; Mason, T. O.

2014-01-01

The structural and physical properties of conducting amorphous Zn-doped SnO2 (a-ZTO) films, prepared by pulsed laser deposition, were investigated as functions of oxygen deposition pressure (pO2), composition, and thermal annealing. X-ray scattering and X-ray absorption spectroscopy measurements reveal that at higher pO2, the a-ZTO films are highly transparent and have a structural framework similar to that found in crystalline (c-), rutile SnO2 in which the Sn4+ ion is octahedrally coordinated by 6 O2- ions. The Sn4+ ion in these films however has a coordination number (CN) smaller by 2%-3% than that in c-SnO2, indicating the presence of oxygen vacancies, which are the likely source of charge carriers. At lower pO2, the a-ZTO films show a brownish tint and contain some 4-fold coordinated Sn2+ ions. Under no circumstances is the CN around the Zn2+ ion larger than 4, and the Zn-O bond is shorter than the Sn-O bond by 0.07 Å. The addition of Zn has no impact on the electroneutrality but improves significantly the thermal stability of the films. Structural changes due to pO2, composition, and thermal annealing account well for the changes in the physical properties of a-ZTO films.

Films of Carbon Nanomaterials for Transparent Conductors

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jun Wei

2013-05-01

Full Text Available The demand for transparent conductors is expected to grow rapidly as electronic devices, such as touch screens, displays, solid state lighting and photovoltaics become ubiquitous in our lives. Doped metal oxides, especially indium tin oxide, are the commonly used materials for transparent conductors. As there are some drawbacks to this class of materials, exploration of alternative materials has been conducted. There is an interest in films of carbon nanomaterials such as, carbon nanotubes and graphene as they exhibit outstanding properties. This article reviews the synthesis and assembly of these films and their post-treatment. These processes determine the film performance and understanding of this platform will be useful for future work to improve the film performance.

Near-unity transparency of a continuous metal film via cooperative effects of double plasmonic arrays

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Liu Zhengqi; Liu Guiqiang; Liu Xiaoshan; Huang Kuan; Chen Yuanhao; Fu Guolan; Zhou Haiqing

2013-01-01

Metal structures with high optical transparency and conductivity are of great importance for practical applications in optoelectronic devices. Here we investigate the transparency response of a continuous metal film sandwiched by double plasmonic nanoparticle arrays. The upper nanoparticle array shows efficient light trapping of the incident field, acting as a light input coupler, and the lower nanoparticle array shows a light release gate opening at the other side, acting as the light output coupler. The strong near-field light–matter interactions of the nano-scale separated plasmonic nanoparticles, the excitation of surface plasmon waves of the metal film, and their cooperative coupling effects result in broadband scattering cancellation and near-unity transparency (up to 96%) in the optical regime. The transparency response in such a structure can be efficiently modified by varying the gap distance of adjacent nanoparticles, dielectric environments, and the distance between the plasmonic array and the metal film. This motif may provide a new alternative approach to obtain transparent and highly conducting metal structures with potential applications in transparent conductors, plasmonic filters, and highly integrated light input and output components. (paper)

Healable, Transparent, Room-Temperature Electronic Sensors Based on Carbon Nanotube Network-Coated Polyelectrolyte Multilayers.

Science.gov (United States)

Bai, Shouli; Sun, Chaozheng; Yan, Hong; Sun, Xiaoming; Zhang, Han; Luo, Liang; Lei, Xiaodong; Wan, Pengbo; Chen, Xiaodong

2015-11-18

Transparent and conductive film based electronics have attracted substantial research interest in various wearable and integrated display devices in recent years. The breakdown of transparent electronics prompts the development of transparent electronics integrated with healability. A healable transparent chemical gas sensor device is assembled from layer-by-layer-assembled transparent healable polyelectrolyte multilayer films by developing effective methods to cast transparent carbon nanotube (CNT) networks on healable substrates. The healable CNT network-containing film with transparency and superior network structures on self-healing substrate is obtained by the lateral movement of the underlying self-healing layer to bring the separated areas of the CNT layer back into contact. The as-prepared healable transparent film is assembled into healable transparent chemical gas sensor device for flexible, healable gas sensing at room temperature, due to the 1D confined network structure, relatively high carrier mobility, and large surface-to-volume ratio. The healable transparent chemical gas sensor demonstrates excellent sensing performance, robust healability, reliable flexibility, and good transparency, providing promising opportunities for developing flexible, healable transparent optoelectronic devices with the reduced raw material consumption, decreased maintenance costs, improved lifetime, and robust functional reliability. © 2015 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Transparent electrode requirements for thin film solar cell modules

KAUST Repository

Rowell, Michael W.; McGehee, Michael D.

2011-01-01

The transparent conductor (TC) layer in thin film solar cell modules has a significant impact on the power conversion efficiency. Reflection, absorption, resistive losses and lost active area either from the scribed interconnect region in monolithically integrated modules or from the shadow losses of a metal grid in standard modules typically reduce the efficiency by 10-25%. Here, we perform calculations to show that a competitive TC must have a transparency of at least 90% at a sheet resistance of less than 10 Ω/sq (conductivity/absorptivity ≥ 1 Ω -1) for monolithically integrated modules. For standard modules, losses are much lower and the performance of alternative lower cost TC materials may already be sufficient to replace conducting oxides in this geometry. © 2011 The Royal Society of Chemistry.

Copper:molybdenum sub-oxide blend as transparent conductive electrode (TCE) indium free

Science.gov (United States)

Hssein, Mehdi; Cattin, Linda; Morsli, Mustapha; Addou, Mohammed; Bernède, Jean-Christian

2016-05-01

Oxide/metal/oxide structures have been shown to be promising alternatives to ITO. In such structures, in order to decrease the high light reflection of the metal film it is embedded between two metal oxides dielectric. MoO3-x is often used as oxide due to its capacity to be a performing anode buffer layer in organic solar cells, while silver is the metal the most often used [1]. Some attempts to use cheaper metal such as copper have been done. However it was shown that Cu diffuses strongly into MoO3-x [2]. Here we used this property to grow simple new transparent conductive oxide (TCE), i.e., Cu: MoO3-x blend. After the deposition of a thin Cu layer, a film of MoO3-x is deposited by sublimation. An XPS study shows more than 50% of Cu is present at the surface of the structure. In order to limit the Cu diffusion an ultra-thin Al layer is deposited onto MoO3-x. Then, in order to obtain a good hole collecting contact with the electron donor of the organic solar cells, a second MoO3-x layer is deposited. After optimization of the thickness of the different layers, the optimum structure is as follow: Cu (12 nm) : MoO3-x (20 nm)/Al (0.5 nm)/ MoO3-x (10 nm). The sheet resistance of this structure is Rsq = 5.2 Ω/sq. and its transmittance is Tmax = 65%. The factor of merit ϕM = T10/Rsq. = 2.41 × 10-3 Ω-1, which made this new TCE promising as anode in organic solar cells. Contribution to the topical issue "Materials for Energy Harvesting, Conversion and Storage (ICOME 2015) - Elected submissions", edited by Jean-Michel Nunzi, Rachid Bennacer and Mohammed El Ganaoui

p-Type Transparent Conducting Oxide/n-Type Semiconductor Heterojunctions for Efficient and Stable Solar Water Oxidation.

Science.gov (United States)

Chen, Le; Yang, Jinhui; Klaus, Shannon; Lee, Lyman J; Woods-Robinson, Rachel; Ma, Jie; Lum, Yanwei; Cooper, Jason K; Toma, Francesca M; Wang, Lin-Wang; Sharp, Ian D; Bell, Alexis T; Ager, Joel W

2015-08-05

Achieving stable operation of photoanodes used as components of solar water splitting devices is critical to realizing the promise of this renewable energy technology. It is shown that p-type transparent conducting oxides (p-TCOs) can function both as a selective hole contact and corrosion protection layer for photoanodes used in light-driven water oxidation. Using NiCo2O4 as the p-TCO and n-type Si as a prototypical light absorber, a rectifying heterojunction capable of light driven water oxidation was created. By placing the charge separating junction in the Si using a np(+) structure and by incorporating a highly active heterogeneous Ni-Fe oxygen evolution catalyst, efficient light-driven water oxidation can be achieved. In this structure, oxygen evolution under AM1.5G illumination occurs at 0.95 V vs RHE, and the current density at the reversible potential for water oxidation (1.23 V vs RHE) is >25 mA cm(-2). Stable operation was confirmed by observing a constant current density over 72 h and by sensitive measurements of corrosion products in the electrolyte. In situ Raman spectroscopy was employed to investigate structural transformation of NiCo2O4 during electrochemical oxidation. The interface between the light absorber and p-TCO is crucial to produce selective hole conduction to the surface under illumination. For example, annealing to produce more crystalline NiCo2O4 produces only small changes in its hole conductivity, while a thicker SiOx layer is formed at the n-Si/p-NiCo2O4 interface, greatly reducing the PEC performance. The generality of the p-TCO protection approach is demonstrated by multihour, stable, water oxidation with n-InP/p-NiCo2O4 heterojunction photoanodes.

ZnO-Nanorod Dye-Sensitized Solar Cells: New Structure without a Transparent Conducting Oxide Layer

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Ming-Hong Lai

2010-01-01

Full Text Available Conventional nanorod-based dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs are fabricated by growing nanorods on top of a transparent conducting oxide (TCO, typically fluorine-doped tin oxide—FTO. The heterogeneous interface between the nanorod and TCO forms a source for carrier scattering. This work reports on a new DSSC architecture without a TCO layer. The TCO-less structure consists of ZnO nanorods grown on top of a ZnO film. The ZnO film replaced FTO as the TCO layer and the ZnO nanorods served as the photoanode. The ZnO nanorod/film structure was grown by two methods: (1 one-step chemical vapor deposition (CVD (2 two-step chemical bath deposition (CBD. The thicknesses of the nanorods/film grown by CVD is more uniform than that by CBD. We demonstrate that the TCO-less DSSC structure can operate properly as solar cells. The new DSSCs yield the best short-current density of 3.96 mA/cm2 and a power conversion efficiency of 0.73% under 85 mW/cm2 of simulated solar illumination. The open-circuit voltage of 0.80 V is markedly higher than that from conventional ZnO DSSCs.

Transparency in the Assessment of Takaful Claims for Construction Works Loss & Damage

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Puteri Nur Farah Naadia Mohd Fauzi

2016-06-01

Full Text Available In the context of the construction industry, an alternative to the conventional insurance for works contracts is the Shariah compliant insurance otherwise known as takaful. Among the most frequently used takaful for construction works contracts is the Contractor’s All Risks (CAR Takaful. However, the future of CAR Takaful may be affected should issues such as marketing and clarification on how it works including how claims are processed, valued and compensation made are not made know to Contractors and Clients. In fact, previous studies have identified that issues on transparency in CAR Takaful products is among the major concerns expressed by the Contractors and Clients. Consequently, a study was conducted, the key objectives being to establish understanding on the concept of transparency in CAR Takaful claims and assess, from the perspectives of the Contractors and Clients, on whether the dealings in CAR Takaful claims are considered transparent or otherwise. The study was conducted principally via desk research and interviews with representative from takaful operators, Contractors and Clients organizations. Key results from the study suggest that transparency in CAR Takaful dealings is a concern especially those related to compliance with the Shariah and manner in which claims are valued and compensation decided. Such lack of transparency, if not addressed soonest possible, may not augur well for the future of the CAR Takaful industry.

Effect of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation on transparent conducting oxide electrodes for dye-sensitized solar cell applications

Science.gov (United States)

Singh, Hemant Kr.; Avasthi, D. K.; Aggarwal, Shruti

2015-06-01

Transparent conducting oxides (TCOs) are used as electrodes in dye-sensitized solar cells (DSSCs) because of their properties such as high transmittance and low resistivity. In the present work, the effects of swift heavy ion (SHI) irradiation on various types of TCOs are presented. The objective of this study is to investigate the effect of SHI on TCOs. For the present study, three different types of TCOs are considered, namely, (a) FTO (fluorine-doped tin oxide, SnO2:F) on a Nippon glass substrate, (b) ITO (indium tin oxide, In2O3:Sn) coated on polyethylene terephthalate (PET) on a Corning glass substrate, and (c) ITO on a Corning glass substrate. These films are irradiated with 120 MeV Ag+9 ions at fluences ranging from 3.0 × 1011 ions/cm2 to 3.0 × 1013 ions/cm2. The structural, morphological, optical and electrical properties are studied via X-ray diffraction (XRD), atomic force microscopy (AFM), UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy and four-probe resistivity measurements, respectively. The ITO-PET electrode is found to exhibit superior conductivity and transmittance properties in comparison with the others after irradiation and, therefore, to be the most suitable for solar cell applications.

The Causes of Fiscal Transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Alt, James E.; Lassen, David Dreyer; Rose, Shanna

We use unique panel data on the evolution of transparent budget procedures in the American states over the past three decades to explore the political and economic determinants of fiscal transparency. Our case studies and quantitative analysis suggest that both politics and fiscal policy outcomes...... influence the level of transparency. More equal political competition and power sharing are associated with both greater levels of fiscal transparency and increases in fiscal transparency during the sample period. Political polarization and past fiscal conditions, in particular state government debt...... and budget imbalance, also appear to affect the level of transparency...

Voluntarism and transparent deliberation

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Steglich-Petersen, Asbjørn

2006-01-01

voluntarism. I argue that transparency to factual questions occurs in practical deliberation in ways parallel to transparency in doxastic deliberation. I argue that this should make us reconsider the appeal to transparency in arguments against doxastic voluntarism, and the wider issue of distinguishing...... theoretical from practical rationality....

Optimal Central Bank Transparency

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Cruijsen, C.A.B.; Eijffinger, S.C.W.; Hoogduin, L.H.

2008-01-01

Should central banks increase their degree of transparency any further? We show that there is likely to be an optimal intermediate degree of central bank transparency. Up to this optimum more transparency is desirable: it improves the quality of private sector inflation forecasts. But beyond the

Optimal central bank transparency

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Cruijsen, C.A.B.; Eijffinger, S.C.W.; Hoogduin, L.

2008-01-01

Should central banks increase their degree of transparency any further? We show that there is likely to be an optimal intermediate degree of central bank transparency. Up to this optimum more transparency is desirable: it improves the quality of private sector inflation forecasts. But beyond the

Optimal central bank transparency

NARCIS (Netherlands)

van der Cruijsen, C.A.B.; Eijffinger, S.C.W.; Hoogduin, L.H.

2010-01-01

Should central banks increase their degree of transparency any further? We show that there is likely to be an optimal intermediate degree of central bank transparency. Up to this optimum more transparency is desirable: it improves the quality of private sector inflation forecasts. But beyond the

Numerical studies of heat transfer by simultaneous radiative-conduction and radiative-convection in a two dimensional semi-transparent medium

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Draoui, Abdeslam

1989-01-01

The works we present here are on numerical approaches of heat transfer coupling radiation-conduction and radiation-convection within semi-transparent two-dimensional medium. The first part deals with a review of equations of radiative transfer and introduces three numerical methods (Pl, P3, Hottel's zones) which enable one to solve this problem in a two-dimensional environment. After comparing the three methods in the case where radiation is the only mode of transfer, we introduce in the second chapter a study of the coupling of radiation with conduction. So, a fourth method is used to solve this problem. These comparisons lead us to various methods which enable us to show the interest of the spherical harmonics approximations. In the third part, the Pl approximation is kept because it is simple to use, moreover it enables us to introduce both the coupling of radiative transfers with laminar convective equations in a thermally driven two-dimensional cavity. The results show a significant influence of the radiative participation of the fluid on heat and dynamic transfer we met in this type of problem. (author) [fr

Deposition and post-processing techniques for transparent conductive films

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Christoforo, Mark Greyson; Mehra, Saahil; Salleo, Alberto; Peumans, Peter

2017-07-04

In one embodiment, a method is provided for fabrication of a semitransparent conductive mesh. A first solution having conductive nanowires suspended therein and a second solution having nanoparticles suspended therein are sprayed toward a substrate, the spraying forming a mist. The mist is processed, while on the substrate, to provide a semitransparent conductive material in the form of a mesh having the conductive nanowires and nanoparticles. The nanoparticles are configured and arranged to direct light passing through the mesh. Connections between the nanowires provide conductivity through the mesh.

High efficiency bifacial Cu2ZnSnSe4 thin-film solar cells on transparent conducting oxide glass substrates

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Jung-Sik Kim

2016-09-01

Full Text Available In this work, transparent conducting oxides (TCOs have been employed as a back contact instead of Mo on Cu2ZnSnSe4 (CZTSe thin-film solar cells in order to examine the feasibility of bifacial Cu2ZnSn(S,Se4 (CZTSSe solar cells based on a vacuum process. It is found that the interfacial reaction between flourine doped tin oxide (FTO or indium tin oxide (ITO and the CZTSe precursor is at odds with the conventional CZTSe/Mo reaction. While there is no interfacial reaction on CZTSe/FTO, indium in CZTSe/ITO was significantly diffused into the CZTSe layers; consequently, a SnO2 layer was formed on the ITO substrate. Under bifacial illumination, we achieved a power efficiency of 6.05% and 4.31% for CZTSe/FTO and CZTSe/ITO, respectively.

A transparent, solvent-free laminated top electrode for perovskite solar cells

OpenAIRE

Makha, Mohammed; Fernandes, Silvia Let?cia; Jenatsch, Sandra; Offermans, Ton; Schleuniger, J?rg; Tisserant, Jean-Nicolas; V?ron, Anna C.; Hany, Roland

2016-01-01

Abstract A simple lamination process of the top electrode for perovskite solar cells is demonstrated. The laminate electrode consists of a transparent and conductive plastic/metal mesh substrate, coated with an adhesive mixture of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate), PEDOT:PSS, and sorbitol. The laminate electrode showed a high degree of transparency of 85%. Best cell performance was achieved for laminate electrodes prepared with a sorbitol concentration of ~30 wt% per mil...

Innovative transparent armour concepts

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Carton, E.P.; Broos, J.P.F.

2011-01-01

Ever since WWII transparent armour consists of a multi-layer of glass panels bonded by thin polymer bond-films using an autoclave process. TNO has worked on the development of innovative transparent armour concepts that are lighter and a have better multi-hit capacity. Two new transparent armour

Anatase phase stability and doping concentration dependent refractivity in codoped transparent conducting TiO2 films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Chen, T L; Furubayashi, Y; Hirose, Y; Hitosugi, T; Shimada, T; Hasegawa, T

2007-01-01

Nb 0.06 Sn x Ti 0.94-x O 2 (x ≤ 0.3) thin films were grown by a pulsed-laser deposition method with varying Sn concentration. Through a combinatorial technique, we find that Sn concentration can reach a maximum of about x = 0.3 while maintaining the stable anatase phase and epitaxy. A doping concentration dependence of the refractivity is revealed, in which refractivity reduction at a wavelength of λ = 500 nm is estimated to be 12.4% for Nb 0.06 Sn 0.3 Ti 0.64 O 2 thin film. Sn doping induced band-gap blue shift can be contributed to the mixing of extended Sn 5s orbitals with the conduction band of TiO 2 . Low resistivity on the order of 10 -4 Ω cm at room temperature and high internal transmittance of more than 95% in the visible light region are exhibited for Nb 0.06 Sn x Ti 0.94-x O 2 thin films (x ≤ 0.2). Optical and transport analyses demonstrate that doping Sn into Nb 0.06 Ti 0.94 O 2 can reduce the refractivity while maintaining low resistivity and high transparency

Transparent ‘solution’ of ultrathin magnesium hydroxide nanocrystals for flexible and transparent nanocomposite films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wang, Jie-Xin; Sun, Qian; Chen, Bo; Zeng, Xiao-Fei; Zhang, Cong; Chen, Jian-Feng; Wu, Xi; Zou, Hai-Kui

2015-01-01

Transparent solutions of nanocrystals exhibit many unique properties, and are thus attractive materials for numerous applications. However, the synthesis of transparent nanocrystal solutions of magnesium hydroxide (MH) with wide applications is yet to be realized. Here, we report a facile two-step process, which includes a direct reactive precipitation in alcohol phase instead of aqueous phase combined with a successive surface modification, to prepare transparent alcohol solutions containing lamellar MH nanocrystals with an average size of 52 nm and an ultrathin thickness of 1–2 nm, which is the thinnest MH nanoplatelet reported in the literatures. Further, highly flexible and transparent nanocomposite films are fabricated with a solution mixing method by adding the transparent MH nanocrystal solutions into PVB solution. Considering the simplicity of the fabrication process, high transparency and good flexibility, this MH/polymer nanocomposite film is promising for flame-resistant applications in plastic electronics and optical devices with high transparency, such as flexible displays, optical filters, and flexible solar cells. (paper)

Reduced graphene oxide filled poly(dimethyl siloxane) based transparent stretchable, and touch-responsive sensors

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Ponnamma, Deepalekshmi; Sadasivuni, Kishor Kumar; Cabibihan, John-John; Yoon, W. Jong; Kumar, Bijandra

2016-01-01

The ongoing revolution in touch panel technology and electronics demands the need for thin films, which are flexible, stretchable, conductive, and highly touch responsive. In this regard, conductive elastomer nanocomposites offer potential solutions for these stipulations; however, viability is limited to the poor dispersion of conductive nanomaterials such as graphene into the matrix. Here, we fabricated a reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) elastomer based transparent and flexible conductive touch responsive film by dispersing rGO honeycombs uniformly into PDMS elastomer through an ionic liquid (IL) modification. Pursuing a simple, scalable, and safe method of solution casting, this provides a versatile and creative design of a transparent and stretchable rGO/IL-PDMS capacitive touch responsive, where rGO acts as a sensing element. This transparent film with ∼70% transmittance exhibits approximately a five times faster response in comparison to rGO/PDMS film, with negligible degradation over time. The performance of this touch screen film is expected to have applications in the emerging field of foldable electronics.

Reduced graphene oxide filled poly(dimethyl siloxane) based transparent stretchable, and touch-responsive sensors

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Ponnamma, Deepalekshmi [Center for Advanced Materials, Qatar University, P. O. Box 2713, Doha (Qatar); Sadasivuni, Kishor Kumar; Cabibihan, John-John [Mechanical and Industrial Engineering, Qatar University, P.O. Box 2713, Doha (Qatar); Yoon, W. Jong [School of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics, University of Washington, Bothell, Washington 98011 (United States); Kumar, Bijandra, E-mail: bijandra.kumar@louisville.edu [Conn Center for Renewable Energy Research, University of Louisville, Louisville, Kentucky 40292 (United States); Research and Development Centre in Pharmaceutical Science and Applied Chemistry, Poona College of Pharmacy, Bharati Vidyapeeth Deemed University Erandawane, Pune 411038 (India)

2016-04-25

The ongoing revolution in touch panel technology and electronics demands the need for thin films, which are flexible, stretchable, conductive, and highly touch responsive. In this regard, conductive elastomer nanocomposites offer potential solutions for these stipulations; however, viability is limited to the poor dispersion of conductive nanomaterials such as graphene into the matrix. Here, we fabricated a reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) elastomer based transparent and flexible conductive touch responsive film by dispersing rGO honeycombs uniformly into PDMS elastomer through an ionic liquid (IL) modification. Pursuing a simple, scalable, and safe method of solution casting, this provides a versatile and creative design of a transparent and stretchable rGO/IL-PDMS capacitive touch responsive, where rGO acts as a sensing element. This transparent film with ∼70% transmittance exhibits approximately a five times faster response in comparison to rGO/PDMS film, with negligible degradation over time. The performance of this touch screen film is expected to have applications in the emerging field of foldable electronics.

TRANSPARENCY IN ITALIAN NON PROFIT ORGANIZATIONS

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Patrizia Gazzola

2014-07-01

Full Text Available The aim of the paper is to evaluate the accountability and transparency of Italian non profits organizations. The main goal is to understand if a general accountability or transparency problem, or a systematic publicity deficit, exist in the third sector in Italy. Non profit organizations have an ethical obligation to their stakeholder and to the public to conduct their activities with accountability and transparency. Non profit organizations should regularly and openly convey information to the stakeholder about their vision, mission, objectives, activities, accomplishments, decision-making processes and organizational structure. Information from a non profit organization should be easily accessible to the stakeholder and should create external visibility, public understanding and trust in the organization, conditions necessary to find donors. Non profit organizations work with communities and community donors need to know how their money is used. In the first part the analysis of the definition of transparency and accountability is made and the sustainability report like an important instrument of communication is considered. In the second part an empirical research is presented. The Italian law allows taxpayers to devote 5 per thousand of their income tax to non profit organizations, choosing between charities, social promotion associations, recognized associations, entities dedicated to scientific research and health care, universities, municipal social services and other non profit organizations. The present study present a quantitative research and it’s based on an empirical analysis of non-profit organizations that receive this donation in Italy in the year 2010 and 2011. In the paper we analyze the transparency and the accountability of the top 100 non profit organizations that have received the contribution of 5 per thousand, checking whether they prepare their Sustainability Report or any other kind of report for communicate the use

Subscribing to Transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

He, Yinghua; Nielsson, Ulf; Guo, Hong

2014-01-01

The paper empirically explores how more trade transparency affects market liquidity. The analysis takes advantage of a unique setting in which the Shanghai Stock Exchange offered more trade transparency to market participants subscribing to a new software package. First, the results show...... that the additional data disclosure increased trading activity, but also increased transactions costs through wider bid-ask spreads. Thus, in contrast to popular policy belief, the paper finds that more transparency need not improve market liquidity. Second, the paper finds a particularly strong immediate liquidity...... impact accompanied by altered trading behavior, which suggests a significant impact on institutional traders subscribing relatively early. Lastly, since the effective level of market transparency is bound to depend on how many traders are subscribing to the data, the study can empirically establish...

Subscribing to Transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

He, Yinghua; Nielsson, Ulf; Guo, Hong

The paper empirically explores how more trade transparency affects market liquidity. The analysis takes advantage of a unique setting in which the Shanghai Stock Exchange offered more trade transparency to market participants subscribing to a new software package. First, the results show...... that the additional data disclosure increased trading activity, but also increased transactions costs through wider bid-ask spreads. Thus, in contrast to popular policy belief, the paper finds that more transparency need not improve market liquidity. Second, the paper finds a particularly strong immediate liquidity...... impact accompanied by altered trading behavior, which suggests a significant impact on institutional traders subscribing relatively early. Lastly, since the effective level of market transparency is bound to depend on how many traders are subscribing to the data, the study can empirically establish...

Color transparency

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Pire, B.; Ralston, J.P.

1991-01-01

This paper reviews the physics of color transparency and the unexpected energy dependence of recent measurements of high-energy fixed-angle elastic scattering in nuclear targets. The authors point out advantages of using transparency as a tool, introducing two concepts - spin and flavor flow filtering - that may be studied with nuclear targets. The special case of electroproduction is also considered

Transparency and Product Variety

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Schultz, Christian

We study the long run e¤ects of transparency in a circular town model of a differentiated market. The market is not fully transparent on the consumer side: A fraction of consumers are uninformed about prices. Increasing transparency reduces the equilibrium price, profit and entry of firms. This i...

Effect of the thickness and hydrogen treatment on the properties of Ga-doped ZnO transparent conductive films

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Lee, Min-Jung; Lim, Jinhyong; Bang, Jungsik; Lee, Woong; Myoung, Jae-Min

2008-01-01

Combined effects of the thickness and hydrogen post-annealing treatment on the structural, electrical, and optical properties of Ga-doped ZnO (GZO) films were investigated as a potential substitute for indium tin oxide transparent conductive oxide. In the as-deposited films, microstructural evolution initially improved the crystallinity up to the thickness of 160 nm accompanying enhanced electrical and optical properties, but further thickness increase resulted in the deterioration of these properties attributable to the development of ZnGa 2 O 4 and Ga 2 O 3 phases originating from the excessive amount of the Ga dopant. Post-annealing treatment of the GZO films in a hydrogen atmosphere improved the electrical and optical properties substantially through possible reduction of the oxide phases and passivation of the surfaces and grain boundaries. In this case, electrical and optical properties remained almost similar for the thickness above 160 nm indicating that there exists a certain optimal film thickness.

Preparation of transparent conductive indium tin oxide thin films from nanocrystalline indium tin hydroxide by dip-coating method

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Koroesi, Laszlo; Papp, Szilvia; Dekany, Imre

2011-01-01

Indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films with well-controlled layer thickness were produced by dip-coating method. The ITO was synthesized by a sol-gel technique involving the use of aqueous InCl 3 , SnCl 4 and NH 3 solutions. To obtain stable sols for thin film preparation, as-prepared Sn-doped indium hydroxide was dialyzed, aged, and dispersed in ethanol. Polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP) was applied to enhance the stability of the resulting ethanolic sols. The transparent, conductive ITO films on glass substrates were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy and UV-Vis spectroscopy. The ITO layer thickness increased linearly during the dipping cycles, which permits excellent controllability of the film thickness in the range ∼ 40-1160 nm. After calcination at 550 o C, the initial indium tin hydroxide films were transformed completely to nanocrystalline ITO with cubic and rhombohedral structure. The effects of PVP on the optical, morphological and electrical properties of ITO are discussed.

Optical and electrical properties of transparent conductive ITO thin films under proton radiation with 100 keV

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Wei, Q.; He, S.Y.; Yang, D.Z.; Liu, J.C.

2005-01-01

Under the simulation environment for the vacuum and heat sink in space, the changes in optical and electrical properties of transparent conductive indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films induced by radiation of protons with 100 keV were studied. The ITO thin films were deposited on JGS1 quartz substrate by a sol-gel method. The sheet resistance and transmittance spectra of the ITO thin films were measured using the four-point probe method and a spectrophotometer, respectively. The surface morphology was analyzed by AFM. The experimental results showed that the electrical and optical performances of the ITO thin films were closely related to the irradiation fluence. When the fluence exceeded a given value 2 x 10 16 cm -2 , the sheet resistance increased obviously and the optical transmittance decreased. The AFM analysis indicated that the grain size of the ITO thin films diminished. The studies about the radiation effect on ITO thin films will help to predict performance evolution of the second surface mirrors on satellites under space radiation environment. (orig.)

Improved optoelectronics properties of ITO-based transparent conductive electrodes with the insertion of Ag/Ni under-layer

Science.gov (United States)

Ali, Ahmad Hadi; Abu Bakar, Ahmad Shuhaimi; Hassan, Zainuriah

2014-10-01

ITO-based transparent conductive electrodes (TCE) with Ag/Ni thin metal under-layer were deposited on Si and glass substrates by thermal evaporator and RF magnetron sputtering system. Ceramic ITO with purity of 99.99% and In2O3:SnO2 weight ratio of 90:10 was used as a target at room temperature. Post-deposition annealing was performed on the TCE at moderate temperature of 500 °C, 600 °C and 700 °C under N2 ambient. It was observed that the structural properties, optical transmittance, electrical characteristics and surface morphology were improved significantly after the post-annealing process. Post-annealed ITO/Ag/Ni at 600 °C shows the best quality of TCE with figure-of-merit (FOM) of 1.5 × 10-2 Ω-1 and high optical transmittance of 83% at 470 nm as well as very low electrical resistivity of 4.3 × 10-5 Ω-cm. The crystalline quality and surface morphological plays an important role in determining the quality of the TCE multilayer thin films properties.

Reactivity and reactions to regulatory transparency in medicine, psychotherapy and counselling.

Science.gov (United States)

McGivern, Gerry; Fischer, Michael D

2012-02-01

We explore how doctors, psychotherapists and counsellors in the U.K. react to regulatory transparency, drawing on qualitative research involving 51 semi-structured interviews conducted during 2008-10. We use the concept of 'reactivity mechanisms' (Espeland & Sauder, 2007) to explain how regulatory transparency disrupts practices through simplifying and decontextualizing them, altering practitioners' reflexivity, leading to defensive forms of practice. We make an empirical contribution by exploring the impact of transparency on doctors compared with psychotherapists and counsellors, who represent an extreme case due to their uniquely complex practice, which is particularly affected by this form of regulation. We make a contribution to knowledge by developing a model of reactivity mechanisms, which explains how clinical professionals make sense of media and professional narratives about regulation in ways that produce emotional reactions and, in turn, defensive reactivity to transparency. Copyright © 2011 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Highly transparent ITO thin films on photosensitive glass: sol-gel synthesis, structure, morphology and optical properties

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Koroesi, Laszlo; Papp, Szilvia; Dekany, Imre [University of Szeged, Supramolecular and Nanostructured Materials Research Group of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, Szeged (Hungary); Beke, Szabolcs [Italian Institute of Technology, Department of Nanophysics, Genova (Italy); Pecz, Bela; Horvath, Robert; Petrik, Peter; Agocs, Emil [Research Institute for Technical Physics and Materials Science, Budapest (Hungary)

2012-05-15

Conductive and highly transparent indium tin oxide (ITO) thin films were prepared on photosensitive glass substrates by the combination of sol-gel and spin-coating techniques. First, the substrates were coated with amorphous Sn-doped indium hydroxide, and these amorphous films were then calcined at 550 {sup circle} C to produce crystalline and electrically conductive ITO layers. The resulting thin films were characterized by means of scanning electron microscopy, UV-Vis spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy and spectroscopic ellipsometry. The measurements revealed that the ITO films were composed of spherical crystallites around 20 nm in size with mainly cubic crystal structure. The ITO films acted as antireflection coatings increasing the transparency of the coated substrates compared to that of the bare supports. The developed ITO films with a thickness of {proportional_to}170-330 nm were highly transparent in the visible spectrum with sheet resistances of 4.0-13.7 k{omega}/sq. By coating photosensitive glass with ITO films, our results open up new perspectives in micro- and nano-technology, for example in fabricating conductive and highly transparent 3D microreactors. (orig.)

Studies on e-beam deposited transparent conductive films of In/sub 2/O/sub 3/ - Sn at moderate substrate temperatures

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Agnihotry, S.A.; Saini, K.K.; Saxena, T.K.; Nagpal, K.C.; Chandra, S.

1985-10-01

An electron beam evaporation method is used to prepare In/sub 2/O/sub 3/ films with and without Sn doping. It is shown that highly transparent and conducting films can be prepared at substrate temperature as low as 200 C. The characteristic feature of such films is their high carrier density and high infrared reflectivity. The lowest resistivity is found to be 0.00024 ohm cm with a carrier concentration of 8 x 10 to the 20th per cu cm and mobility of about 30 per cm/V s at the doping level of 4 mol percent SnO/sub 2/. These polycrystalline films show a highly preferred orientation. On the basis of Hall measurements and structural data, sources of scattering in these films are suggested. 29 references.

Tunable Broadband Nanocarbon Transparent Conductor by Electrochemical Intercalation.

Science.gov (United States)

Wan, Jiayu; Xu, Yue; Ozdemir, Burak; Xu, Lisha; Sushkov, Andrei B; Yang, Zhi; Yang, Bao; Drew, Dennis; Barone, Veronica; Hu, Liangbing

2017-01-24

Optical transparent and electrical conducting materials with broadband transmission are important for many applications in optoelectronic, telecommunications, and military devices. However, studies of broadband transparent conductors and their controlled modulation are scarce. In this study, we report that reversible transmittance modulation has been achieved with sandwiched nanocarbon thin films (containing carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and reduced graphene oxide (rGO)) via electrochemical alkali-ion intercalation/deintercalation. The transmittance modulation covers a broad range from the visible (450 nm) to the infrared (5 μm), which can be achieved only by rGO rather than pristine graphene films. The large broadband transmittance modulation is understood with DFT calculations, which suggest a decrease in interband transitions in the visible range as well as a reduced reflection in the IR range upon intercalation. We find that a larger interlayer distance in few-layer rGO results in a significant increase in transparency in the infrared region of the spectrum, in agreement with experimental results. Furthermore, a reduced plasma frequency in rGO compared to few-layer graphene is also important to understand the experimental results for broadband transparency in rGO. The broadband transmittance modulation of the CNT/rGO/CNT systems can potentially lead to electrochromic and thermal camouflage applications.

Controlling the optical performance of transparent conducting oxides using direct laser interference patterning

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Berger, Jana; Roch, Teja; Correia, Stelio; Eberhardt, Jens; Lasagni, Andrés Fabián

2016-01-01

In this study, a laser based process called Direct Laser Interference Patterning (DLIP) was used to fabricate micro-textured boron doped zinc oxide (ZnO:B) thin films to be used as electrodes in thin-film silicon solar cells. First, the ablation thresholds of the ZnO:B film were determined using a nanosecond pulsed laser at wavelengths of 266 and 355 nm (100 mJ/cm"2 and 89 mJ/cm"2, respectively). After that, DLIP experiments were performed at 355 nm wavelength. Line-like periodic surface structures with spatial periods ranging from 0.8 to 5.0 μm were fabricated using two interfering laser beams. It was found that the structuring process of the transparent conducting oxide (TCO) is mainly based on a photo-thermal mechanism. The surface of the ZnO:B film was molten and evaporated at the interference maxima positions and the depth and width of the generated microfeatures depend on the laser parameters as well as the spatial period of the interference pattern. The optical properties of the structured TCOs were investigated as a function of the utilized laser processing parameters. Both diffuse and total transmission and the intensity of the diffraction orders were determined. These data were used to calculate the increase of the optical path of the transmitted light. - Highlights: • Direct Laser Interference Patterning (DLIP) on boron doped zinc oxide (LPCVD-ZnO:B) • No relevant decrease of total transmission • Periods of 1.5 μm provide large diffraction angle and good diffraction intensity. • Significant increase of optical path length could be reached.

Controlling the optical performance of transparent conducting oxides using direct laser interference patterning

Energy Technology Data Exchange (ETDEWEB)

Berger, Jana; Roch, Teja [Fraunhofer-Institut für Werkstoff-und Strahltechnik IWS, Winterbergstr. 28, 01277 Dresden (Germany); Technische Universität Dresden, Institute of Manufacturing Technology, George-Baehr-Str.1, 01069 Dresden (Germany); Correia, Stelio; Eberhardt, Jens [Bosch Solar Energy AG, August-Broemel-Str. 6, 99310 Arnstadt (Germany); Lasagni, Andrés Fabián, E-mail: andres_fabian.lasagni@tu-dresden.de [Fraunhofer-Institut für Werkstoff-und Strahltechnik IWS, Winterbergstr. 28, 01277 Dresden (Germany); Technische Universität Dresden, Institute of Manufacturing Technology, George-Baehr-Str.1, 01069 Dresden (Germany)

2016-08-01

In this study, a laser based process called Direct Laser Interference Patterning (DLIP) was used to fabricate micro-textured boron doped zinc oxide (ZnO:B) thin films to be used as electrodes in thin-film silicon solar cells. First, the ablation thresholds of the ZnO:B film were determined using a nanosecond pulsed laser at wavelengths of 266 and 355 nm (100 mJ/cm{sup 2} and 89 mJ/cm{sup 2}, respectively). After that, DLIP experiments were performed at 355 nm wavelength. Line-like periodic surface structures with spatial periods ranging from 0.8 to 5.0 μm were fabricated using two interfering laser beams. It was found that the structuring process of the transparent conducting oxide (TCO) is mainly based on a photo-thermal mechanism. The surface of the ZnO:B film was molten and evaporated at the interference maxima positions and the depth and width of the generated microfeatures depend on the laser parameters as well as the spatial period of the interference pattern. The optical properties of the structured TCOs were investigated as a function of the utilized laser processing parameters. Both diffuse and total transmission and the intensity of the diffraction orders were determined. These data were used to calculate the increase of the optical path of the transmitted light. - Highlights: • Direct Laser Interference Patterning (DLIP) on boron doped zinc oxide (LPCVD-ZnO:B) • No relevant decrease of total transmission • Periods of 1.5 μm provide large diffraction angle and good diffraction intensity. • Significant increase of optical path length could be reached.

Visually Imperceptible Liquid-Metal Circuits for Transparent, Stretchable Electronics with Direct Laser Writing.

Science.gov (United States)

Pan, Chengfeng; Kumar, Kitty; Li, Jianzhao; Markvicka, Eric J; Herman, Peter R; Majidi, Carmel

2018-03-01

A material architecture and laser-based microfabrication technique is introduced to produce electrically conductive films (sheet resistance = 2.95 Ω sq -1 ; resistivity = 1.77 × 10 -6 Ω m) that are soft, elastic (strain limit >100%), and optically transparent. The films are composed of a grid-like array of visually imperceptible liquid-metal (LM) lines on a clear elastomer. Unlike previous efforts in transparent LM circuitry, the current approach enables fully imperceptible electronics that have not only high optical transmittance (>85% at 550 nm) but are also invisible under typical lighting conditions and reading distances. This unique combination of properties is enabled with a laser writing technique that results in LM grid patterns with a line width and pitch as small as 4.5 and 100 µm, respectively-yielding grid-like wiring that has adequate conductivity for digital functionality but is also well below the threshold for visual perception. The electrical, mechanical, electromechanical, and optomechanical properties of the films are characterized and it is found that high conductivity and transparency are preserved at tensile strains of ≈100%. To demonstrate their effectiveness for emerging applications in transparent displays and sensing electronics, the material architecture is incorporated into a couple of illustrative use cases related to chemical hazard warning. © 2018 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim.

Design of transparent conductors and periodic two-dimensional electron gases without doping

Science.gov (United States)

Zhang, Xiuwen; Zhang, Lijun; Zunger, Alex; Perkins, John; Materials by Design Team; John D. Perkins Collaboration

The functionality of transparency plus conductivity plays an important role in renewable energy and information technologies, including applications such as solar cells, touch-screen sensors, and flat panel display. However, materials with such seemingly contraindicated properties are difficult to come by. The traditional strategy for designing bulk transparent conductors (TCs) starts from a wide-gap insulator and finds ways to make it conductive by extensive doping. We propose a different strategy for TC design--starting with a metallic conductor and designing transparency by control of intrinsic interband transitions and intraband plasmonic frequency. We identified specific design principles for prototypical intrinsic TC classes and searched computationally for materials that satisfy them. The electron gases in the 3D intrinsic TCs demonstrate intriguing properties, such as periodic 2D electron gas regions with very high carrier density. We will discuss a more extended search of these functionalities, in parallel with stability and growability calculations

Transparency in Health Programmes

OpenAIRE

Vian, Taryn

2008-01-01

Transparency is an important tool for good governance, helping to expose abusive practices including fraud, patronage, corruption, and other abuses of power. Increasing transparency can also enhance accountability by providing performance management information and exposing policies and procedures to oversight. This U4 Brief discusses the role of transparency in preventing corruption in the health sector.

The impact of records management system in transparency of public administrations: Transparency by design

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Agustí Cerrillo Martínez

2018-05-01

Full Text Available Records management system has a great impact in the improvement of transparency in public administration. Transparency by design refers to the inclusion of transparency duties stated by legislation in force in the records’ life cycle in a way that it guarantees citizens effective access to public information. In this paper, the changes that public administrations have to propel in their records management systems to improve public transparency and to make easy access to information are analysed. In particular, as a case study, provisions made by Law 19/2014, of December 29, on Transparency, Access to Public Information and Good Governance of Catalonia are explored.

Budgetary Structure as a Determinant in Measuring Fiscal Transparency

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Benito Furtado Mota

2017-08-01

Full Text Available National and International research studies often relate fiscal transparency to political, socio-economic and fiscal variables. Therefore, this study seeks to analyze how budget execution (revenues and expenses influence active fiscal transparency in municipalities in the state of Paraiba. Thus, Focco-PB (Forum on Fighting Corruption Paraíba reports were analyzed, with a view to identifying the  Active Fiscal Transparency Index in Paraíba’s municipalities in relation to this study’s dependent variable. Subsequently, independent variables were collected (intergovernmental transfer revenue, individual per capita revenue, spending on human resources, education and health in the TCE / PB database. Initially, a Pearson correlation test was performed and later an analysis of panel data  with a fixed effect. Furthermore, descriptive analyses of the dependent variables in relation to data for the years 2013, 2014 and 2015 were conducted. The results suggest that Income from Transfers and Health Expenditure  reflected a negative relation with respect to the Active Fiscal Transparency Index whilst (ITFA Individual Income Per Capita and Spending on Human Resources indicate a positive relation.   As proposed in this study, it can be concluded that most of the variables studied and which make up budgetary structure impact on the Active Fiscal Transparency Index in Paraíba’s municipalities.

Passive Collecting of Solar Radiation Energy using Transparent Thermal Insulators, Energetic Efficiency of Transparent Thermal Insulators

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Smajo Sulejmanovic

2014-11-01

Full Text Available This paper explains passive collection of solar radiation energy using transparent thermal insulators. Transparent thermal insulators are transparent for sunlight, at the same time those are very good thermal insulators. Transparent thermal insulators can be placed instead of standard conventional thermal insulators and additionally transparent insulators can capture solar radiation, transform it into heat and save heat just as standard insulators. Using transparent insulators would lead to reduce in usage of fossil fuels and would help protection of an environment and reduce effects of global warming, etc.

Understanding modern transparency

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Meijer, A.J.|info:eu-repo/dai/nl/172436729

2009-01-01

Proponents and opponents fiercely debate whether computer-mediated transparency has a positive effect on trust in the public sector. This article enhances our understanding of transparency by presenting three perspectives: a premodern, modern and post-modern perspective, and analyzing the basic

Competition for transparency as a carrier of competition. Transparency needs in the European wholesale electricity markets

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jong, Hanneke de; Hakvoort, Rudi

2005-01-01

This paper analyses different transparency aspects regarding European wholesale electricity markets and discusses transparency issues to be solved. In Europe, currently some progress has been made with respect to market transparency but transparency issues related to transmission, system operation and regulation have received little attention so far. Transmission system operators (TSOs) and regulatory authorities need certain market information in order to secure efficient competition. However, TSOs and regulatory authorities need to communicate themselves in order to facilitate competition and decrease uncertainty among market participants. Furthermore, considering ongoing market integration both TSOs and regulatory authorities must exchange information amongst themselves in order to facilitate coordination and monitoring activities. The effect of a higher level of transparency on effective competition is depended on two categories of transparency aspects: aspects that are related to transparency in the sense of open and adequate communication (perspicuity) and aspects that are related to the easiness to understand (clarity). Transparency includes both aspects. Pursuing overall harmonization of the European transparency level is important to fully profit from a higher level of (international) harmonization. Effective harmonization requires harmonization on all communication aspects. For Europe, with its many immature markets, the dilemma remains whether it is preferable to have less transparency with a high level of harmonization or to have a higher level of transparency but a lower level of harmonization. (Author)

Lipase immobilized on nanostructured cerium oxide thin film coated on transparent conducting oxide electrode for butyrin sensing

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Panky, Sreedevi; Thandavan, Kavitha; Sivalingam, Durgajanani; Sethuraman, Swaminathan; Krishnan, Uma Maheswari; Jeyaprakash, Beri Gopalakrishnan; Rayappan, John Bosco Balaguru

2013-01-01

Nanostructured cerium oxide (CeO 2 ) thin films were deposited on transparent conducting oxide (TCO) substrate using spray pyrolysis technique with cerium nitrate salt, Ce(NO 3 ) 3 ·6H 2 O as precursor. Fluorine doped cadmium oxide (CdO:F) thin film prepared using spray pyrolysis technique acts as the TCO film and hence the bare electrode. The structural, morphological and elemental characterizations of the films were carried out using X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM) and energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDX) respectively. The diffraction peak positions in XRD confirmed the formation of highly crystalline ceria with cubic structure and FE-SEM images showed uniform adherent films with granular morphology. The band gaps of CeO 2 and TCO were found to be 3.2 eV and 2.6 eV respectively. Lipase enzyme was physisorbed on the surface of CeO 2 /TCO film to form the lipase/nano-CeO 2 /TCO bioelectrode. Sensing studies were carried out using cyclic voltammetry and amperometry, with lipase/nano-CeO 2 /TCO as working electrode and tributyrin as substrate. The mediator-free biosensor with nanointerface exhibited excellent linearity (0.33–1.98 mM) with a lowest detection limit of 2 μM with sharp response time of 5 s and a shelf life of about 6 weeks. -- Graphical abstract: Nanostructured cerium oxide thin films were deposited on transparent conducting oxide (TCO) substrate using spray pyrolysis technique. Fluorine doped cadmium oxide (CdO:F) thin film acts as the TCO film and hence the working electrode. Lipase enzyme was physisorbed on the surface of CeO 2 /TCO film and hence the lipase/nano-CeO 2 /TCO bioelectrode has been fabricated. Sensing studies were carried out using cyclic voltammetry and amperometry with tributyrin as substrate. The mediator-free biosensor with nanointerface exhibited excellent linearity (0.33–1.98 mM) with a lowest detection limit of 2 μM with sharp response time of 5 s and a shelf life of about 6

Influence of growth temperature of transparent conducting oxide layer on Cu(In,Ga)Se2 thin-film solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Cho, Dae-Hyung; Chung, Yong-Duck; Lee, Kyu-Seok; Park, Nae-Man; Kim, Kyung-Hyun; Choi, Hae-Won; Kim, Jeha

2012-01-01

We have studied the influence of growth temperature (T G ) in the deposition of an indium tin oxide (ITO) transparent conducting oxide layer on Cu(In,Ga)Se 2 (CIGS) thin-film solar cells. The ITO films were deposited on i-ZnO/glass and i-ZnO/CdS/CIGS/Mo/glass substrates using radio-frequency magnetron sputtering at various T G up to 350 °C. Both the resistivity of ITO and the interface quality of CdS/CIGS strongly depend on T G . For a T G ≤ 200 °C, a reduction in the series resistance enhanced the solar cell performance, while the p–n interface of the device was found to become deteriorated severely at T G > 200 °C. CIGS solar cells with ITO deposited at T G = 200 °C showed the best performance in terms of efficiency.

Introducing modern technology to promote transparency in health services.

Science.gov (United States)

Islam, Mohammad Shafiqul

2015-01-01

Quantitative indicators show that Bangladeshi maternal and child healthcare is progressing satisfactorily. However, healthcare quality is still inadequate. It is hypothesised that modern technology enhances healthcare quality. Therefore, the purpose of this paper is to investigate how modern technology such as electronic record keeping and the internet can contribute to enhancing Bangladeshi healthcare quality. This study also explores how socio-economic and political factors affect the healthcare quality. This paper is based on a qualitative case study involving 68 in-depth interviews with healthcare professionals, elected representatives, local informants and five focus group discussions with healthcare service users to understand technology's effect on health service quality. The study has been conducted in one rural and one urban service organisations to understand how various factors contribute differently to healthcare quality. The findings show that modern technology, such as the internet and electronic devices for record keeping, contribute significantly to enhancing health service transparency, which in turn leads to quality health and family planning services. The findings also show that information and communication technology (ICT) is an effective mechanism for reducing corruption and promoting transparency. However, resource constraints impact adversely on the introduction of technology, which leads to less transparent healthcare. Progress in education and general socio-economic conditions makes it suitable to enhance ICT usage, which could lead to healthcare transparency, but political and bureaucratic factors pose a major challenge to ensure transparency. This paper can be a useful guide for promoting governance and healthcare quality in developing countries including Bangladesh. It analyses the ICT challenges that healthcare staff face when promoting transparent healthcare. This paper provides a deeper understanding of transparency and healthcare

Categories and Dimensions of Organizational Transparency

DEFF Research Database (Denmark)

Albu, Oana Brindusa; Flyverbom, Mikkel

Transparency is a distinctive area of research across disciplines and presents significant importance for organization studies. However, transparency is rarely subject to structured and critical scrutiny and as a result its relevance for organizational analysis is underestimated. In an attempt...... to foreground the value of transparency studies, we offer an overview of the existing research and indicate two paradigmatic positions underpinning the transparency literature, namely what we term non-performative and performative approaches. The main contribution of the paper lies in this ground......, an approach which remains underexplored. Finally, we discuss some avenues for future studies of the organizing properties of transparency: the secrecy-transparency interplay, the power-transparency nexus and the transparency ‘family tree’ (i.e., intersections between multiple forms of disclosure)....

On color transparency

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jennings, B.K.; Miller, G.A.

1989-10-01

A quantum mechanical treatment of high momentum transfer nuclear processes is presented. Color transparency, the suppression of initial and final state interaction effects, is shown to arise from using the closure approximation. New conditions for the appearance of color transparency are derived

Perceptual transparency from image deformation.

Science.gov (United States)

Kawabe, Takahiro; Maruya, Kazushi; Nishida, Shin'ya

2015-08-18

Human vision has a remarkable ability to perceive two layers at the same retinal locations, a transparent layer in front of a background surface. Critical image cues to perceptual transparency, studied extensively in the past, are changes in luminance or color that could be caused by light absorptions and reflections by the front layer, but such image changes may not be clearly visible when the front layer consists of a pure transparent material such as water. Our daily experiences with transparent materials of this kind suggest that an alternative potential cue of visual transparency is image deformations of a background pattern caused by light refraction. Although previous studies have indicated that these image deformations, at least static ones, play little role in perceptual transparency, here we show that dynamic image deformations of the background pattern, which could be produced by light refraction on a moving liquid's surface, can produce a vivid impression of a transparent liquid layer without the aid of any other visual cues as to the presence of a transparent layer. Furthermore, a transparent liquid layer perceptually emerges even from a randomly generated dynamic image deformation as long as it is similar to real liquid deformations in its spatiotemporal frequency profile. Our findings indicate that the brain can perceptually infer the presence of "invisible" transparent liquids by analyzing the spatiotemporal structure of dynamic image deformation, for which it uses a relatively simple computation that does not require high-level knowledge about the detailed physics of liquid deformation.

Al-Doped ZnO Monolayer as a Promising Transparent Electrode Material: A First-Principles Study

Directory of Open Access Journals (Sweden)

Mingyang Wu

2017-03-01

Full Text Available Al-doped ZnO has attracted much attention as a transparent electrode. The graphene-like ZnO monolayer as a two-dimensional nanostructure material shows exceptional properties compared to bulk ZnO. Here, through first-principle calculations, we found that the transparency in the visible light region of Al-doped ZnO monolayer is significantly enhanced compared to the bulk counterpart. In particular, the 12.5 at% Al-doped ZnO monolayer exhibits the highest visible transmittance of above 99%. Further, the electrical conductivity of the ZnO monolayer is enhanced as a result of Al doping, which also occurred in the bulk system. Our results suggest that Al-doped ZnO monolayer is a promising transparent conducting electrode for nanoscale optoelectronic device applications.

Transparency and public value : Analyzing the transparency practices and value creation of public utilities

NARCIS (Netherlands)

Douglas, S.C.; Meijer, A.J.

2016-01-01

This article examines to what extent transparency is a condition for the creation of public value. Transparency is usually narrowly defined as a tool for external stakeholders to monitor the internal workings of an organization, but public value management positions transparency as a broader

Silver nanowire/polyaniline composite transparent electrode with improved surface properties

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Kumar, A.B.V. Kiran; Jiang, Jianwei; Bae, Chang Wan; Seo, Dong Min; Piao, Longhai; Kim, Sang-Ho

2014-01-01

Highlights: • AgNWs/PANI transparent electrode was prepared by layer-by-layer coating method. • The surface roughness of the electrode reached to 6.5 nm (root mean square). • The electrode had reasonable sheet resistance (25 Ω/□) and transmittance (83.5%). - Abstract: Silver nanowires (AgNWs) are as potential candidates to replace indium tin oxide (ITO) in transparent electrodes because of their preferred conducting and optical properties. However, their rough surface properties are not favorable for the fabrication of optoelectronic devices, such as displays and thin-film solar cells. In the present investigation, AgNWs/polyaniline composite transparent electrodes with better surface properties were successfully prepared. AgNWs were incorporated into polyaniline:polystyrene sulfonate (PANI:PSS) by layer-by-layer coating and mechanical pressing. PANI:PSS decreased the surface roughness of the AgNWs electrode by filling the gap of the random AgNWs network. The transparent composite electrode had decreased surface roughness (root mean square 6.5 nm) with reasonable sheet resistance (25 Ω/□) and transmittance (83.5%)

What color transparency measures

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Jain, P.; Ralston, J.P.

1992-01-01

Color transparency is commonly accepted to be a prediction of perturbative QCD. However it is more a phenomenon probing the interface between the perturbative and nonperturbative regimes, leading to some intricacy in its theoretical description. In this paper we study the consequences of the impulse approximation to the theory in various quantum mechanical bases. We show that the fully interacting hadronic basis, which consists of eigenstates of the exact Hamiltonian in the presence of the nucleus, provides a natural basis to study color transparency. In this basis we can relate the quark wave function at a small transverse separation distance b 2 2 directly to transparency ratios measured in experiment. With the formalism, experiment can be used to map out the quark wave function in this region. We exhibit several loopholes in existing arguments predicting a rise in transparency ratios with energy, and suggest alternatives. Among the results, we argue that the theoretical prediction of a rising transparency ratio with energy may be on better footing for heavy-quark bound states than for relativistic light-quark systems. We also point out that transparency ratios can be constant with energy and not at variance with perturbative QCD

Semi-transparent solar cells

International Nuclear Information System (INIS)

Sun, J; Jasieniak, J J

2017-01-01

Semi-transparent solar cells are a type of technology that combines the benefits of visible light transparency and light-to-electricity conversion. One of the biggest opportunities for such technologies is in their integration as windows and skylights within energy-sustainable buildings. Currently, such building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) are dominated by crystalline silicon based modules; however, the opaque nature of silicon creates a unique opportunity for the adoption of emerging photovoltaic candidates that can be made truly semi-transparent. These include: amorphous silicon-, kesterite-, chalcopyrite-, CdTe-, dye-sensitized-, organic- and perovskite- based systems. For the most part, amorphous silicon has been the workhorse in the semi-transparent solar cell field owing to its established, low-temperature fabrication processes. Excitement around alternative classes, particularly perovskites and the inorganic candidates, has recently arisen because of the major efficiency gains exhibited by these technologies. Importantly, each of these presents unique opportunities and challenges within the context of BIPV. This topic review provides an overview into the broader benefits of semi-transparent solar cells as building-integrated features, as well as providing the current development status into all of the major types of semi-transparent solar cells technologies. (topical review)

Semi-transparent solar cells

Science.gov (United States)

Sun, J.; Jasieniak, J. J.

2017-03-01

Semi-transparent solar cells are a type of technology that combines the benefits of visible light transparency and light-to-electricity conversion. One of the biggest opportunities for such technologies is in their integration as windows and skylights within energy-sustainable buildings. Currently, such building integrated photovoltaics (BIPV) are dominated by crystalline silicon based modules; however, the opaque nature of silicon creates a unique opportunity for the adoption of emerging photovoltaic candidates that can be made truly semi-transparent. These include: amorphous silicon-, kesterite-, chalcopyrite-, CdTe-, dye-sensitized-, organic- and perovskite- based systems. For the most part, amorphous silicon has been the workhorse in the semi-transparent solar cell field owing to its established, low-temperature fabrication processes. Excitement around alternative classes, particularly perovskites and the inorganic candidates, has recently arisen because of the major efficiency gains exhibited by these technologies. Importantly, each of these presents unique opportunities and challenges within the context of BIPV. This topic review provides an overview into the broader benefits of semi-transparent solar cells as building-integrated features, as well as providing the current development status into all of the major types of semi-transparent solar cells technologies.

EU Transparency Register