Room-temperature application of VO microstructures on rigid and flexible substrates based on synthesis of crystalline VO solution

• Published in: Materials advances Vol. 1; no. 6; pp. 1685 - 1694
• Main Authors: Taha, Mohammad, Mayes, Edwin L. H, Field, Matthew R, Sun, Miao, Singh, Mandeep, Zou, Wenyue
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 21.09.2020
• ISSN: 2633-5409
• DOI: 10.1039/d0ma00338g

The insulator-to-metal transition (IMT) in vanadium dioxide (VO 2 ) offers temperature-dependent infrared wavelength attenuation, rendering it a great contender for bolometers, optoelectronics, memory devices, smart-windows adaptive thermal camouflage applications. However, the required high temperature processing (up to 600 °C) of VO 2 inhibits its widespread utilization, particularly in applications with low fabrication temperature limits - such as devices on flexible polymer substrates. This study provides a new method that relies on van der Waals substrates with inert basal planes and hydrophilic surfaces to overcome the hurdle of high processing temperatures. Using this method, highly-oriented, optically active crystalline VO 2 was deposited on both glass and flexible polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrates. We observe VO 2 crystals during IMT using transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and report >60% change in transmission on both glass and flexible PET, as well as demonstrating IR modulation. An innovative method that enables the deployment of thermochromic VO 2 microstructures at room temperature for infrared (IR) modulation.