Silver nanoparticles (NPs) are the most widely used conductive material throughout the printed electronics space due to their high conductivity and low cost. However, when interfacing with other prominent printed materials, such as semiconducting carbon nanotubes (CNTs) in thin‐film transistors (TFTs), silver is suboptimal when compared to more expensive or less conductive materials. Consequently, there would be significant value to improving the interface of printed silver to CNT films. In this work, the impact of nanostructure morphology on the electrical properties of printed silver and nanotube junctions in CNT‐TFTs is investigated. Three distinct silver morphologies (NPs, nanoflakes – NFs, and nanowires – NWs) are explored with top‐ and bottom‐contact configurations for each. The NF morphology in a top‐contact configuration is found to yield the best electrical interface to CNTs, resulting in an average contact resistance of 1.2 MΩ ⋅ µm. Beyond electrical performance, several trade‐offs in morphology selection are revealed, including print resolution and process temperature. While NF inks produce the best interfaces, NP inks produce the smallest features, and NW inks are compatible with low processing temperatures (<80 °C). These results outline the trade‐offs between silver contact morphologies in CNT‐TFTs and show that contact morphology selection can be tailored for specific applications.
Manufacturing of printed electronics relies on the deposition of conductive liquid inks, typically onto polymeric or paper substrates. Among available conductive fillers for use in electronic inks, carbon nanotubes (CNTs) have high conductivity, low density, processability at low temperatures, and intrinsic mechanical flexibility. However, the electrical conductivity of printed CNT structures has been limited by CNT quality and concentration, and by the need for nonconductive modifiers to make the ink stable and extrudable. This study introduces a polymer‐free, printable aqueous CNT ink, and, via an ambient direct‐write printing process, presents the relationships between printing resolution, ink rheology, and ink‐substrate interactions. A model is constructed to predict printed feature sizes on impermeable substrates based on Wenzel wetting. Printed lines have conductivity up to 10 000 S m−1. The lines are flexible, with <5% change in DC resistance after 1000 bending cycles, and <3% change in DC resistance with a bending radius down to 1 mm. Demonstrations focus on i) conformality, via printing CNTs onto stickers that can be applied to curved surfaces, ii) interactivity using a CNT‐based button printed onto folded paper structure, and iii) capacitive sensing of liquid wicking into the substrate itself. Facile integration of surface mount components on printed circuits is enabled by the intrinsic adhesion of the wet ink.
more » « less- PAR ID:
- 10375251
- Publisher / Repository:
- Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Advanced Functional Materials
- Volume:
- 31
- Issue:
- 25
- ISSN:
- 1616-301X
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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