Ag Nanowires/Polydimethylsiloxane Composite Thin Films for Stretchable, Transparent Electrodes: Applications for Flexible Electronic Devices

The demand for robust, stretchable, transparent conductive films (TCFs) is growing alongside the advancement of wearable and flexible electronics. Among all kinds of materials, metallic nanowires (M-NWs) deposited on a transparent and flexible substrate are promising materials owing to their excellent flexibility, good electrical conductivity, and transparency. It has been shown that there are many techniques to fabricate the composite thin-film materials; however, complex fabrication procedures required for a high-vacuum environment, along with the addition of additive materials, are often utilized. In this study, silver nanowires (Ag NWs)/PDMS (polydimethylsiloxane) composite TCFs were fabricated using a facile, additive-free transfer printing method, which provides a much easier process compared to conventional methods. Correlations between the layer-dependent changes in Ag NW network formation and fundamental properties, such as mechanical, optical, and electrical properties, were systematically studied in this work. Increasing the number of Ag NW layers improved the network connectivity, leading to enhanced electrical stability under mechanical deformation. High mechanical stability and recoverable behavior of the composite films were also found in examinations of the adhesive tests and bending tests. The multilayer films exhibited proper optical transmittance and low sheet resistance (9.6 Ω sq–1). This facile approach provides a scalable route to high-performance, stretchable, transparent electrodes for next-generation flexible electronic devices.