High performance metal microstructure for carbon-based transparent conducting electrodes
In this work, a metal busbar microstructure is introduced to decrease the effective sheet resistance of both graphene and carbon nanotube films to a value suitable for use as transparent conducting electrodes (TCEs). The proposed busbar architecture, implemented with Cu, theoretically can reduce the...
Saved in:
Published in | Thin solid films Vol. 520; no. 15; pp. 4827 - 4830 |
---|---|
Main Authors | , , , , , , |
Format | Journal Article |
Language | English |
Published |
Amsterdam
Elsevier B.V
31.05.2012
Elsevier |
Subjects | |
Online Access | Get full text |
Cover
Loading…
Summary: | In this work, a metal busbar microstructure is introduced to decrease the effective sheet resistance of both graphene and carbon nanotube films to a value suitable for use as transparent conducting electrodes (TCEs). The proposed busbar architecture, implemented with Cu, theoretically can reduce the sheet resistance by a factor of 1000, while yet limiting the optical absorption to 4%. Experimental sheet resistance and optical transparency data are presented for two metals with differing contact resistance (Pd and Cu) and for mono- and multi-layer graphene as well as nanotube films. It is found that the metal busbar microstructure decreases the sheet resistance by a factor of 8 and 70 on graphene and nanotube films respectively, a sufficient resistance reduction to enable utilization as a TCE. The contact resistance between the metal grid and carbon film is believed to limit the ultimate performance. The metal busbar microstructure provides a viable route to the use of carbon films in photovoltaic and display applications.
► A hybrid Transparent Conducting Layer (TCL) for Solar Cells is fabricated. ► The TCL consists of metal busbar+fingers overlaying graphene or a nanotube matrix. ► Graphene film sheet resistance was decreased to 20Ω/□ at 90% transmittance. ► Nanotube film sheet resistance was decreased to 5Ω/□ at 70% transmittance. ► This hybrid TCL can be used in photovoltaic and display applications. |
---|---|
ISSN: | 0040-6090 1879-2731 |
DOI: | 10.1016/j.tsf.2012.01.031 |