Direct Printing for Additive Patterning of Silver Nanowires for Stretchable Sensor and Display Applications

A unique direct printing method is developed to additively pattern silver nanowires (AgNWs) with length of up to approximate to 40 mu m. Uniform and well-defined AgNW features are printed on various substrates by optimizing a series of parameters including ink composition, printing speed, nozzle size, substrate temperature, and hydrophobicity of the substrate surface. The capability of directly printing such long AgNWs is essential for stretchable electronics applications where mechanical compliance is required as manifested by a systematic study comparing the electrical and electromechanical performance of printed AgNW features with different nanowire lengths. Such printed AgNWs are used to demonstrate biaxially stretchable conductors, ultrasensitive capacitive pressure sensor arrays, and stretchable electroluminescent displays, indicating their great potential for applications in low-cost wearable electronics. This strategy is adaptable to other material platforms like semiconducting nanowires, which may offer a cost-effective entry to various nanowire-based mechanically compliant sensory and optoelectronic systems.