Extreme Light Management in Mesoporous Wood Cellulose Paper for Optoelectronics

Wood fibers possess natural unique hierarchical and mesoporous structures that enable a variety of new applications beyond their traditional use. We dramatically modulate the propagation of light through random network of wood fibers. A highly transparent and clear paper with transmittance >90% and haze <1.0% applicable for high-definition displays is achieved. By altering the morphology of the same wood fibers that form the paper, highly transparent and hazy paper targeted for other applications such as solar cell and antiglare coating with transmittance >90% and haze >90% is also achieved. A thorough investigation of the relation between the mesoporous structure and the optical properties in transparent paper was conducted, including full-spectrum optical simulations. We demonstrate commercially competitive multitouch touch screen with clear paper as a replacement for plastic substrates, which shows excellent process compatibility and comparable device performance for commercial applications. Transparent cellulose paper with tunable optical properties is an emerging photonic material that will realize a range of much improved flexible electronics, photonics, and optoelectronics.