Preparation and Properties of Flexible Multilayered Transparent Conductive Films on Substrate with High Surface...

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Nanotechnology
• Thin Film Technology

Background:

• Flexible transparent conductive films (TCFs) are crucial for next-generation electronics.
• Developing TCFs on rough substrates presents challenges in maintaining performance.
• Multilayered structures offer tunable optical and electrical properties.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the structural characteristics and performance of ZnS/Cu/Ag/TiO2 multilayered TCFs on flexible PET substrates with high surface roughness.
• To analyze the effects of structural parameters on the optical and electrical properties of the TCFs.
• To compare the performance of asymmetric and symmetric TCF structures.

Main Methods:

• Magnetic sputtering was used to deposit ZnS/Cu/Ag/TiO2 multilayered films on PET substrates.
• Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were employed for surface morphology analysis.
• Grazing incidence X-ray diffraction (GIXRD), spectrophotometry, and four-probe measurements were used for structural and property characterization.

Main Results:

• The optimized asymmetric ZnS/Cu/Ag/TiO2 TCFs exhibited a uniform surface morphology.
• Excellent optical transmittance (84.40%) and electrical conductivity (5.52 Ω/sq) were achieved.
• An optimal figure of merit of 33.19 × 10^-3 Ω^-1 was obtained in the visible spectrum.

Conclusions:

• The asymmetric multilayered TCFs demonstrate satisfactory properties on rough-surface substrates.
• Optimized structure parameters and interfacial compatibility are key to the film's performance.
• The developed TCFs show significant potential for flexible electronic device applications.