Generation of transparent conductive electrodes by laser consolidation of LIFT printed ITO nanoparticle layers

Abstract

Indium tin oxide (ITO) is one of the few materials available that display a high transparency in the visible wavelength region and at the same time can conduct electrical currents. Thus it is widespread in many optoelectronic applications such as displays or solar cells. Layers of this material are commonly deposited by vacuum deposition methods which are not compatible with inexpensive production methods such as roll-to-roll processing or printed electronics in general. In this work, we demonstrate the generation of arbitrarily shaped ITO layers by laser induced forward transfer of ITO nanoparticles. The transferred particle ink volumes range in the sub picoliter regime. Feature sizes as small as 20 μm are produced without any outward flow or “coffee-stain” effects. Furthermore, the feasibility of excimer laser consolidation of these nanoparticulate layers in ambient air for the generation of dense ITO films is shown. Conductivities of over 4000 Ω−1 m−1 were achieved. The presented methods are a promising alternative for the generation of transparent conducting layers for the inexpensive production of optoelectronics.