Direct and self-selective synthesis of Ag nanowires on patterned graphene

Abstract

We report the direct and self-selective synthesis of Ag nanowires (NWs) on graphene patterns through a modified citrate reduction reaction approach. High-density NWs were selectively formed only on the graphene areas, whereas NWs were not synthesized on the SiO₂/Si and glass substrates. The size and density of the Ag NWs gradually increased with increasing reaction time and AgNO₃ concentration. When the Ag NWs were synthesized with 60 mM AgNO₃ at 90 °C for 30 min, the average width and length of the NWs were approximately 150 nm and 3 μm, respectively. Graphene–Ag NW hybrids showed excellent light transmittance (91.5% at 550 nm) with low sheet resistance (102 Ω sq⁻¹). These properties can be further optimized by manipulating the size and density of the Ag NWs. This simple and cost-effective process for the fabrication of graphene–Ag NW hybrid electrode patterns is useful for a variety of applications.