Researchers from Brown University and ATMI Inc. report the best-ever conductivity and transparency performance for an ITO made using a chemical solution, and it is intended for application in resistive touch screens.
To make the films, the team synthesized nanoscale ITO crystals in a solution. They then made a flat and smooth film by dripping the solution onto a glass plate followed by rapid spinning, a process called spin casting. Finally they annealed the coated plates for six hours and tested their transparency and conductivity. The resulting conductive ITO films are a mere 146-billionth of a meter thick and allow 93 percent of light to pass through them.
The team plans to further drive down electrical resistance, reduce the length of time the films need to anneal, and lay down fine patterns of the films. The result will potentially be the facile, low-cost method manufacturers want.
