Electrochromic and transparent conducting oxide nanorods

Electrochromic materials are of interest for a wide variety of applications, such as displays and smart windows. Many electrochromic oxide materials are synthesized through sol-gel processing. We have demonstrated a general technique for the synthesis of oxide nanorods using sol electrophoretic deposition with an appropriate template. This technique can be applied for the synthesis of nanorods of electrochromic materials, such as TiO2, V2O5 and Nb2O5, with diameters of similar to100 nm and a length of similar to10 mum. By attaching these nanorods to a conducting substrate (such as ITO coated glass), it is possible to characterize the electrochromic behavior of these materials via UV-Vis absorbance spectroscopy. A similar technique has been used to make nanorods of the transparent conducting oxide indium tin oxide (ITO), which is often used as a working electrode in electrochromic devices. Such ITO nanorods have diameters of similar to75-140 nm and lengths up to 60 mum.