Clear advantages of new film materials now

HC Plastics News: A research team led by scientists at the University of Minnesota has discovered a new type of nanofilm material with the highest electrical conductivity. The related paper was published in Nature Communications, and the research also indicated that this new material may develop smaller, faster and more powerful electronic products and more efficient solar cells.     According to relevant researchers, this new material is unique not only because of its high electrical conductivity, but also because of its wide band gap, which makes light easily pass through and exhibit optical transparency. In most cases, materials with wide band gaps typically have low electrical conductivity and poor transparency.     "With its high conductivity and wide band gap, it is an ideal material for the manufacture of optically transparent conductive films. It can be used in a variety of electronic devices, including high-power electronic devices, electronic displays, touch screens, and solar cells that require light to pass through the device. Etc. "explained Bharat Jalan, a professor and lead researcher in chemical engineering and materials science at the University of Minnesota.     At present, the transparent conductor in most electronic products uses the chemical element indium. As the price of indium has generally risen in the past two decades, the cost of existing display technologies has increased. Therefore, in order to find alternative materials with the same performance and even better performance as indium-based transparent conductors, researchers have made great efforts.     In this study, researchers managed to find a solution. They developed a new transparent conductive film using a new synthesis method, in which they grew a BaSnO3 film (a combination of barium, tin, and oxygen, called barium stannate), and replaced the elemental tin with a chemical precursor of tin. The chemical precursor has unique free radical properties, which can improve chemical reactivity and greatly improve the formation process of the metal oxide. Both barium and tin are much cheaper and more abundant than indium.     Abhinav Prakash, a graduate student in chemical engineering and materials science at the University of Minnesota, said, "We were very surprised that the tin chemical precursor had played such an important role in the first use. This was a great adventure, but for us to Said it was a big breakthrough. "     Jalan and Prakash said that the new process allows them unprecedented control over thickness, composition, and defect concentration, and that this approach can be used to create materials and is well-suited for many other material systems where elements are difficult to oxidize. The new process is also replicable and extensible.     They further added that the superior quality of the material structure increases the defect concentration, enabling them to discover its high conductivity. The next step is to continue to reduce defects at the atomic scale.     "While this material has the highest electrical conductivity in the same material category, in addition to reducing defects, we also find it has the potential for new physics and a lot of room for improvement, so this is our Next goal, "Jalan said. Editor-in-chief: Wang Ning 12