Abstract

A flexible quasi-solid-state electrochromic device (ECD), assembled with a polymeric crystal composite electrolyte and tungsten oxide/nickel oxide (WO3/NiO) complementary system, is demonstrated in this study. The polymer composite, which is composed of a UV-cured ethoxylated trimethylolpropane triacrylate (ETPTA), propylene carbonate (PC) and ferrocene (Fc), is used as the electrolyte in the flexible quasi-solid-state ECD. The optimal composition ration of this composite is at the weight ratio of 15/85 for ETPTA/PC with 1 M LiClO4. For the cathodic electrochromic electrode, a flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) is used as the substrate, and indium-tin- oxide (ITO) and WO3 are deposited sequentially on the PET by sputtering. A NiO/ITO/PET electrode prepared by sputtering is used as the anodic coloring electrode. The thickness of ITO, WO3 and NiO film is 110, 70 and 60 nm, respectively. This flexible all-solid-state ECD fabricated with the polymeric crystal composite electrolyte shows an optical contrast of ca. 37.5% at 550 nm. The optical transmittance of the ECD at 550 nm can be reversibly modulated from 47.5% (bleached) to 10.0% (darkened), by applying potentials of 2.5 and 2.5 V, respectively.

Highlights

  • Electrochromism is the phenomenon related to the optical changes during a reversible electrochemical process of some materials

  • The detail of the electrochromic device (ECD) assembly is described as follows: a 0.1 ml monomer solution of the polymeric electrolyte was dropped onto the WO3 thin-film electrode and covering it with the nickel oxide (NiO) thin-film electrode

  • The color of the polymeric electrolyte is yellowish because ferrocene was added into the electrolyte

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Summary

Introduction

Electrochromism is the phenomenon related to the optical changes during a reversible electrochemical process of some materials. Electrochromic materials have been attracting much interest for their potential applications including electrochromic windows [2] [3], rear-view mirrors [4], electrochromic displays [5], and electronic paper or electrochromic painting [6] [7] Inorganic electrochromic materials, such as Prussian blue [8] and transition metaloxides (e.g., W, Ni, Ir, V, Ti, Co and Mo), have been studied for a long time [9]. Compared to the cathodic coloration material of WO3, nickel oxide (NiO) is a typical anodiccoloration material and has drawn much interest for the last decades These two electrochromic materials can be fully transparent and assembled to a complementary electrochromic device (ECD) [16]. The influence of the polymeric electrolyte on the ECD’s optical performance is discussed in this paper

Preparation of the WO3 and NiO Thin-Film Electrode
Results and Discussion
Conclusion

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