Dependence of Performance of Organic Light-emitting Devices on Sheet Resistance of Indium-tin-oxide Anodes

The dependence of the performance of organic light-emitting devices（OLEDs） on the sheet resistance of indiumtin-oxide（ITO） anodes was investigated by measuring the steady state current density brightness voltage characteristics and the electroluminescent spectra. The device with a higher sheet resistance anode shows a lower current density, a lower brightness level, and a higher operation voltage. The electroluminescence（EL） efficiencies of the devices with the same structure but different ITO anodes show more complicated differences. Furthermore, the shift of the light-emitting zone toward the anode was found when an anode with a higher sheet resistance was used. These performance differences are discussed and attributed to the reduction of hole injection and the increase in voltage drop over ITO anode with the increase in sheet resistance.

Sheet Resistance and Gas-Sensing Properties of Tin Oxide Thin Films by Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapor Deposition

Tin oxide (SnO2) thin films are prepared at different temperatures by plasmaenhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). The structural characterizations of the films are investigated by various analysis techniques. X-ray diffraction patterns (XRD) show that the phase of SnO2 films are different at different deposition temperatures. The sheet resistance of the films decreases with increase of deposition temperature. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) shows that the SnO2 thin film is non-stoichiometric. The sheet resistance increases with increase in oxygen flow. Sb-doped SnO2 thin films are more sensitive to alcohol than carbon monoxide, and its maximum sensitivity is about 220%.

Calculated and Experimental Research of Sheet Resistances of Laser-Doped Silicon Solar Cells

The calculated and experimental research of sheet resistances of crystalline silicon solar cells by dry laser doping is investigated. The nonlinear numerical model on laser melting of crystalline silicon and liquid-phase diffusion of phosphorus atoms by dry laser doping is analyzed by the finite difference method implemented in MATLAB. The melting period and melting depth of crystalline silicon as a function of laser energy density is achieved. The effective liquid-phase diffusion of phosphorus atoms in melting silicon by dry laser doping is confirmed by the rapid decrease of sheet resistances in experimental measurement. The plateau of sheet resistances is reached at around 15 Ω/. The calculated sheet resistances as a function of laser energy density is obtained and the calculated results are in good agreement with the corresponding experimental measurement. Due to the successful verification by comparison between experimental measurement and calculated results, the simulation results could be used to optimize the virtual laser doping parameters.

Peeling behavior and spalling resistance of CFRP sheets bonded to bent concrete surfaces

In this paper, the peeling behavior and the spalling resistance effect of carbon fiber reinforced polymer （CFRP） sheets externally bonded to bent concrete surfaces are firstly investigated experimentally. Twenty one curved specimens and seven plane specimens are studied in the paper, in which curved specimens with bonded CFRP sheets can simulate the concrete spalling in tunnel, culvert, arch bridge etc., whereas plane specimens with bonded CFRP sheets can simulate the concrete spalling in beam bridge, slab bridge and pedestrian bridge. Three kinds of curved specimens with different radii of curvature are chosen by referring to practical tunnel structures, and plane specimens are used for comparison with curved ones. A peeling load is applied on the FRP sheet by loading a circular steel tube placed into the central notch of beam to debond CFRP sheets from the bent concrete surface, meanwhile full-range load-deflection curves are recorded by a MTS 831.10 Elastomer Test System. Based on the experimental results, a theoretical analysis is also conducted for the specimens. Both theoretical and experimental results show that only two material parameters, the interfacial fracture energy of CFRP-concrete interface and the tensile stiffness of CFRP sheets, are needed for describing the interfacial spalling behavior. It is found that the radius of curvature has remarkable influence on peeling load-deflection curves. The test methods and test results given in the paper are helpful and available for reference to the designer of tunnel strengthening.

Biomimic Vein-Like Transparent Conducting Electrodes with Low Sheet Resistance and Metal Consumption

In this contribution,inspired by the excellent resource management and material transport function of leaf veins,the electrical transport function of metallized leaf veins is mimicked from the material transport function of the vein networks.By electroless copper plating on real leaf vein networks with copper thickness of only several hundred nanometre up to several micrometre,certain leaf veins can be converted to transparent conductive electrodes with an ultralow sheet resistance 100 times lower than that of state-of-the-art indium tin oxide thin films,combined with a broadband optical transmission of above 80%in the UV–VIS–IR range.Additionally,the resource efficiency of the vein-like electrode is characterized by the small amount of material needed to build up the networks and the low copper consumption during metallization.In particular,the high current density transport capability of the electrode of>6000 A cm^−2 was demonstrated.These superior properties of the vein-like structures inspire the design of high-performance transparent conductive electrodes without using critical materials and may significantly reduce the Ag consumption down to<10%of the current level for mass production of solar cells and will contribute greatly to the electrode for high power density concentrator solar cells,high power density Li-ion batteries,and supercapacitors.

Transparent conductive graphene films prepared by hydroiodic acid and thermal reduction

Transparent conductive graphene films are fabricated by the transfer printing of graphene aqueous dispersion followed by hydrohalic acids and thermal reduction. Results indicate that the graphene film reduced by hydroiodic acid （HI） reduction combined with thermal treatment shows a higher electrical conductivity than that reduced only by thermal treatment at the same transparency. A film with a sheet resistance of - 2400 D./sq at a transparency over 72% is obtained at a typical wavelength of 550 nm.

FORMATION OF MANGANESE SILICIDE THIN FILMS BY SOLID PHASE REACTION

Manganese silicide MnSi_(2-x) thin films have been prepared on n-type siliconsubstrates through solid phase reaction. The heterostructures were analyzed by X-ray diffraction,Rutherford backscattering spectroscopy, Fourier transform infrared transmittance spectroscopy andthe four-point probe technique. The results show that two manganese silicides have been formedsequentially via the reaction of thin layer Mn with Si substrate at different irradiation annealingstages, i.e., MnSi at 450 deg C and MnSi_(1.73) at 550 deg C. MnSi_(1.73) phase exhibits preferredgrowth after irradiation with infrared. In situ four-point probe measurements of sheet resistanceduring infrared irradiation annealing show that nucleation of MnSi and phase transformation of MnSito MaSi_(1.73) occur at 410 deg C and 530 deg C, respectively; the MnSi phase shows metallicbehavior, while MnSi_(1.73) exhibits semiconducting behavior. Characteristic phonon bands ofMnSi_(2-x) silicides, which can be used for phase identification along with conventional XRDtechniques, have been observed by FTIR spectroscopy.

MoM-based topology optimization method for planar metallic antenna design

The metallic antenna design problem can be treated as a problem to find the optimal distribution of conductive material in a certain domain. Although this problem is well suited for topology optimization method, the volumetric distribution of conductive material based on 3D finite element method (FEM) has been known to cause numerical bottlenecks such as the skin depth issue, meshed 'air regions' and other numerical problems. In this paper a topology optimization method based on the method of moments (MoM) for configuration design of planar metallic antenna was proposed. The candidate structure of the planar metallic antenna was approximately considered as a resistance sheet with position-dependent impedance. In this way, the electromagnetic property of the antenna can be analyzed easily by using the MoM to solve the radiation problem of the resistance sheet in a finite domain. The topology of the antenna was depicted with the distribution of the impedance related to the design parameters or relative densities. The conductive material (metal) was assumed to have zero impedance, whereas the non-conductive material was simulated as a material with a finite but large enough impedance. The interpolation function of the impedance between conductive material and non-conductive material was taken as a tangential function. The design of planar metallic antenna was optimized for maximizing the efficiency at the target frequency. The results illustrated the effectiveness of the method.

A novel parameterization method for the topology optimization of metallic antenna design

In this paper, based on a tangential interpolation function and an adaptively increasing penalty-factor strategy(TIPS), a novel parameterization method with a self-penalization scheme aimed for the topology optimization of metallic antenna design is proposed. The topology description is based on the material distribution approach.The proposed tangential interpolation function aims to associate the material resistance with design variables, in which the material resistance is expressed in the arctangent scale and the arctangent resistance is interpolated with the design variables using the rational approximation of material properties. During the optimization process, a strategy with an adaptively increasing penalty factor is used to eliminate the remaining gray scale elements, as illustrated in examples,in the topology optimization based on the proposed tangential interpolation function. Design results of typical examples express the effectiveness of the proposed TIPS parameterization.

Ohmic contacts of 4H-SiC on ion-implantation layers

The ohmic contacts of 4H-SiC are fabricated on nitrogen ion implanted layers made by performing box-like-profile implantation three and four times. Implantation parameters such as the standard deviation σ and the projection range Rp are calculated by the Monte Carlo simulator TRIM. Ni/Cr ohmic contacts on Si-face 4H-SiC implantation layers are measured by transfer length methods （TLMs）. The results show that the values of sheet resistance Rsh are 30 kΩ/□ and 4.9 kΩ/□ and the values of specific contact resistance Pc of ohmic contacts are 7.1 × 10^-4 Ω. cm^2 and 9.5× 10^-5Ω. cm^2 for the implanted layers with implantation performed three and four times respectively.

Dopant-Tunable Ultrathin Transparent Conductive Oxides for Efficient Energy Conversion Devices

Ultrathin film-based transparent conductive oxides(TCOs)with a broad work function(WF)tunability are highly demanded for e cient energy conversion devices.However,reducing the film thickness below 50 nm is limited due to rapidly increasing resistance;furthermore,introducing dopants into TCOs such as indium tin oxide(ITO)to reduce the resistance decreases the transparency due to a trade-o between the two quantities.Herein,we demonstrate dopant-tunable ultrathin(≤50 nm)TCOs fabricated via electric field-driven metal implantation(m-TCOs;m=Ni,Ag,and Cu)without com-promising their innate electrical and optical properties.The m-TCOs exhibit a broad WF variation(0.97 eV),high transmittance in the UV to visible range(89–93%at 365 nm),and low sheet resistance(30–60Ωcm-2).Experimental and theoretical analyses show that interstitial metal atoms mainly a ect the change in the WF without substantial losses in optical transparency.The m-ITOs are employed as anode or cathode electrodes for organic light-emitting diodes(LEDs),inorganic UV LEDs,and organic photovoltaics for their universal use,leading to outstanding performances,even without hole injection layer for OLED through the WF-tailored Ni-ITO.These results verify the proposed m-TCOs enable e ective carrier transport and light extraction beyond the limits of traditional TCOs.

Simple Proofs of Upper and Lower Envelopes of Van Der Pauw’s Equation for Hall-Plates with an Insulated Hole and Four Peripheral Point-Contacts

For plane singly-connected domains with insulating boundary and four point-sized contacts, C0 …C3, van der Pauw derived a famous equation relating the two trans-resistances R01,23, R12,30 with the sheet resistance without any other parameters. If the domain has one hole van der Pauw’s equation becomes an inequality with upper and lower bounds, the envelopes. This was conjectured by Szymański et al. in 2013, and only recently it was proven by Miyoshi et al. with elaborate mathematical tools. The present article gives new proofs closer to physical intuition and partly with simpler mathematics. It relies heavily on conformal transformation and it expresses for the first time the trans-resistances and the lower envelope in terms of Jacobi functions, elliptic integrals, and the modular lambda elliptic function. New simple formulae for the asymptotic limit of a very large hole are also given.

Synthesis and Characterization of Graphene Oxide and Reduced Graphene Oxide Thin Films Deposited by Spray Pyrolysis Method

Graphene Oxide (GO) was chemically synthesized from Natural Flake Graphite (NFG). The GO was chemically reduced to Reduced Graphene Oxide (RGO) using hydrazine monohydrate. Thin films of GO and RGO were also deposited on sodalime glass substrate using spray pyrolysis technique (SPT). The samples were characterized using Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) with Energy Dispersive X-Ray (EDS) facility attached to it, UV-Visible Spectrometry and Four-Point probe. The FTIR spectra showed the addition of oxygen functionality groups in GO while such groups was drastically reduced in RGO. SEM micrograph of GO thin film showed a porous sponge-like structure while the micrograph of RGO thin film showed evenly distributed and well connected graphene structure. The EDX spectrum of RGO showed that there was decrease in oxygen content and increase in carbon content of RGO when compared to GO. The optical analysis of the GO and RGO thin films gave a direct energy bandgap of 2.7 eV and 2.2 eV respectively. The value of sheet resistance of GO and RGO films was determined to be 22.9 × 106Ω/sq and 4.95 × 106Ω/sq respectively.

Developments of Cr-Si and Ni-Cr Single-Layer Thin-Film Resistors and a Bi-Layer Thin-Film Resistor with Adjustable Temperature Coefficient of Resistor

At first, Cr-Si (28 wt% Cr, 72 wt% Si) and Ni-Cr (80 wt% Ni, 20 wt% Cr) thin-film materials were deposited by using sputtering method at the same parameters, and their physical and electrical properties were investigated. The resistances of Cr-Si and Ni-Cr thin-film resistors decreased with the increase of deposition time (thickness) and their resistivity had no apparent variations as the deposition time increased. The temperature coefficient of resistance (TCR) of single-layer Cr-Si thin-film resistors was negative and the TCR value of single-layer Ni-Cr thin-film resistors was positive. For that, we used Cr-Si thin films as upper (or lower) layer and Ni-Cr thin films as lower (upper) layer to investigate a bi-layer thin-film structure. The deposition time of Ni-Cr thin films was fixed at 10 min and the deposition time of Cr-Si thin films was changed from 10 min to 60 min. We had found that as Cr-Si thin films were used as upper or lower layers they had similar deposition rates. We had also found that the thickness and stack method of Cr-Si thin films had large effects on the resistance and TCR values of the bi-layer thin-film resistors.

Influences of Film Thickness on the Electrical Properties of TaN_x Thin Films Deposited by Reactive DC Magnetron Sputtering

TaNx thin films were deposited on commercial polished Al2O3 ceramic substrates by reactive dc magnetron sputtering. The influences of the film thickness on the electrical properties of the samples were examined in detail. It is found that the film thickness does not influence the phase structures of the TaNx thin films. The sheet resistances of the samples shift from 173 Ω/sq. to 7.5 Ω/sq. with the film thickness shifting from 30 nm to 280 nm. With the increase of the film thickness from 30 nm to 280 nm, the temperature coefficient of resistance （TCR） of the samples shifts from negative value to positive value. When the film thickness is about 100 nm, TaNx thin films exhibits a near-zero TCR value （approximately -15×10^-6/℃）. This fact implies that TaNx thin films with a null TCR can be obtained by adjusting the film thickness. The variation in the electrical properties of the TaNx thin films with the film thickness can be qualitatively explained by the parallel connection of surface layer with high resistivity and negative TCR and TaNx layer with low resistivity and positive TCR.

Direct growth of graphene on vertically standing glass by a metal-free chemical vapor deposition method

A new method to directly grow graphene on quartz glass substrate by atmospheric-pressure chemical vapor deposition （CVD） without using any catalyst was developed. The prime feature of this method is to build a vertical-glass model in the quartz tube to significantly increase the collision probability of the carbon precursors and reactive fragments between each other with the glass surface. The growth rate of high-quality graphene on glass remarkably increases compared with the conventional gas flow CVD technique. The optical transmittance and sheet resistance of the graphene glass can be readily adjusted by regulating growth time. When growth time is 35 rain, the graphene glass presents an intriguing sheet resistance of about 1.48 kΩ sq^-1 at a transmittance of 93.08%and exhibits an excellent hydrophobic performance. The method is simple and scalable, and might stimulate various potential applications of transparent and conductive graphene glass in practical fields.

Effects of laser processing parameters on properties of laserinduced graphene by irradiating CO_(2) laser on polyimide

The emerging technique of carbonization of polyimide(PI)by direct laser writing receives great attention for its flexibility,versatility,and ease-of-patterning capability in creating a variety of functional laser-induced graphene(LIG)sensors and devices.LIG prepared by CO_(2) laser irradiating of the PI film is characterized by scanning electron microscopy(SEM),X-ray diffraction(XRD),transmission electron microscope(TEM),specific surface area analyzer,synchronous thermal analysis,and Raman spectroscopy with the focus on investigating the effects of laser parameters(e.g.,power,scanning speed)on the microstructure,thickness,and sheet resistance of LIG.Both TEM and XRD indicate that LIG is composed of many graphene layers with a layer spacing of 0.34 nm.The specific surface area of LIG decreases with the increase of laser power.The ratio of the thickness of LIG over the depth of the carbonized PI film as the expansion ratio characterizes the expansibility of LIG.The influence of image resolution and off-focus value on the sheet resistance of LIG is explained by the superposition mechanism of laser scanning spots.

Tunable colors and conductivity by electroless growth of Cu/Cu2O particles on sol-gel modified cellulose

Development of colored surfaces by formation of nano-structured aggregates is a widely used strategy in nature to color lightweight structures (e.g. butterflies) without the use of dye pigments. The deposition of nanoscale particles mimics nature in it’s approach coloring surfaces. This work presents sol-gel modification of cellulose surfaces used to form a template for growth of Cu/Cu2O core–shell particles with defined size-distributions. Besides improving the adhesion of the deposited particulate material, the sol-gel matrix serves as a template for the control of particle sizes of the Cu/Cu2O structures, and as a consequence of particle size variation the surface color is tunable. As an example, red color was achieved with an average particle size of 35 nm, and shifts gradually to blue appearance when particles have grown to 80 nm on the sol-gel modified fabric. The copper concentration on representative fabrics is kept low to avoid modifying the textile characteristics and were all in the range of 150–170 mg per g of cellulose material. As a result of copper deposition on the surface of the material, the cellulose fabric also became electrically conductive. Remarkably, the electrical conductivity was found to be dependent on the average particle sizes of the deposits and thus related to the change in observed color. The generation of color by growth of nano-sized particles on sol-gel templates provides a highly promising approach to stain surfaces by physical effects without use of synthetic colorants, which opens a new strategy to improve environmental profile of coloration.

Transparent and conductive PEDOT:PSS/Ag NW/PEDOT:PSS hybrid films prepared by spin-coating at room temperature

PEDOT：PSS/Ag NW/PEDOT：PSS hybrid films were deposited on PET substrates by the spin coating technique at room temperature. The optical transmittance, sheet resistance, crystallization and surface morphology were characterized by using the double beam spectrophotometer, Hall effect system, X-ray diffractometer and field emission scanning electron microscopy. XRD patterns of the hybrid films display characteristic diffraction peaks of Ag （111） and Ag （200）, and the Ag NW networks have a polycrystalline structure with a Ag （111） preferred orientation. A high transmittance of 83.95% at the 550 nm wavelength and a low sheet resistance of 21.98 Ω/□ are achieved for 3-PEDOT：PS S/5-Ag NW/3-PEDOT： PS S hybrid films.