Enhanced conductivity of transparent and. flexible silver nanowire electrodes fabricated by a solution-processed method at room temperature

A simple method was developed to increase the electrical conductivity of Ag nanowire (NW) transparent electrodes prepared at room temperature. By dipping Ag NW coated poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET) film into AgBr solution with sodium ascorbate as reductant, Ag nanoparticles grow on the surface of Ag NWs and their junction positions. It was found that the attachment of Ag nanoparticles on Ag NWs decreases the electrode film resistance from 220-300 Omega/sq. to 30-50 Omega/sq., which is mainly due to the change in junction resistance with Ag nanoparticles functioning as a bridge for electron transportation between Ag NWs. Ag NW coated PET films have a transmittance of 85.0% at the spectral wavelength of 550 nm, and this value does not change much after AgBr treatment. A mechanical study shows that Ag NW electrodes on flexible substrates have excellent robustness subjected to bending. The properties of transparent Ag NW electrodes prepared using our method meet the requirements of transparent electrodes for many applications and could be a replacement for indium tin oxide for flexible electronics and solar cells. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.