Nanostructure and electrical conductivity correlation of O-2 plasma processing and AgNW-coated condensation polymer

Abstract

The aim of this study is to invent the flexible conductive fabrics and films through O-2 plasma pretreatment and silver nanowire (AgNW) solution coating. And nanostructure and electrical conductivity correlation characteristics were studied using FE-SEM, atomic force microscopy, water contact angle, electricity, and FTIR spectroscopy. It was found that as O-2 plasma processing time was increased, the surface roughness (nm) and surface hydrophilicity of film were also increased. Moreover, electrical resistance (Omega/cm) was decreased when O-2 plasma pretreatment time and the applied amount of AgNW solution were increased.O-2 plasma treated polyethylene terephthalate (PET) films(without AgNW coating) showed high electrical resistance to the point of being nonconductive materials. Besides, water contact angles of film decreased as the O-2 plasma treatment time was increased, which shows that plasma treatment time has an effect on electrical conductivity. The FTIR shows that the transmittance peak depth of plasma-treated samples was reduced compared to that of the untreated samples. Therefore, it is estimated that O-2 plasma-treated and AgNW-coated fabrics and films can be applied to high-function smart wear, flexible transparent electrode materials, information and communication technology, and the Internet of Things(IoT).