Enhancing Stability and Electrical Properties in Silver Nanowire Transparent Conductive Electrodes by Coating Platinum on Silver Nanowires

Abstract

In this study, the electrical properties and stability of silver nanowire transparent conductive electrodes (TCEs) were improved through the platinum electroplating process (AgNWs@Pt TCEs). After electroplating, environmental and thermal stabilities increased considerably, whereas sheet resistance was greatly reduced. Sheet resistance sharply decreased from 181.3 Ω/□ to 16.59 Ω/□. Meanwhile, the thermal stability of the AgNWs@Pt TCEs was enhanced by 20 °C compared with that of TCEs based on silver nanowires. The sheet resistance of the AgNWs@Pt TCEs remained nearly constant after exposure to ambient air for five months. The optimal electroplating condition was achieved at an electroplating current of 10 µA for 30 s. Under this condition, the sheet resistance, transmittance, and figure-of-merit (FOM) values of the AgNWs@Pt TCEs were approximately 16.59 Ω/□, 83.89%, and 123 Ω−1, respectively.