Copper nanowire based transparent conductive films with high stability and superior stretchability

Abstract

In contrast to traditional “rigid and brittle” electronics, nowadays new electronic materials tend to be flexible, curvilinear, and even stretchable to meet the demands of wearable or body conformal electronic devices. Herein, a facile strategy has been demonstrated to synthesize copper nanowires with fewer particles and higher yield (promoted by 3 times). Through an artful fabrication and transfer technique, copper nanowires are constructed into stretchable conductive films, which not only possess good conductivity-transmittance performance (91% for 220 Ω □⁻¹), but also exhibit excellent mechanical robustness against adhesion, friction and bending. Besides, the partly-embedding structure of nanowire network gives rise to chemical resistance (stable conductivity through acid/alkali test), and most significantly, extremely superb stability against oxidation (no degradation of conductivity after 50 days in ambient condition). This work opens a way for Cu nanowire-based transparent conductive films into various practical applications, especially when harsh environmental conditions are inevitable.