Thermal atomic layer deposition of In2O3 thin films using a homoleptic indium triazenide precursor and water

Indium oxide (In2O3) is an important transparent conducting material widely used in optoelectronic applications. Herein, we study the deposition of In2O3 by thermal atomic layer deposition (ALD) using our recently reported indium(III) triazenide precursor and H2O. A temperature interval with self-limiting growth was found between ~270–385°C with a growth per cycle of ~1.0 Å. The deposited films were polycrystalline cubic In2O3 with In/O ratios of ~1.20, and low levels of C and no detectable N impurities. The transmittance of the films was found to be >70% in visible light and the resistivity was found to be 0.2 mΩcm. The high growth rates, low impurities, high optical transmittance, and low resistivity of these films give promise to this process being used for ALD of In2O3 films that are good candidates for potential display and touch-screen applications.

Low Concentration and High Transparency Keratin Hydrogel Fabricated via Cryoablation

Keratins are highly attractive for medical applications due to their inherent self-assemblies characteristics and biocompatibility. However, nearly all researches have focused on the properties of hybrid hydrogels which was prepared from human hair keratin with other materials, and the preparation methods and properties of pure keratin hydrogels are rarely studied. Thus, we extracted keratins from rabbit hair, and a low concentration and high purity RHK hydrogel was then prepared by a simple freeze–thaw cycle and used to study gelation and the optical properties. The results indicated that RHK keratin hydrogel is a reversible thixotropic system and elastic modulus the storage modulus (G′) substantially improves with freeze–thaw cycles. The systematic assessments including microstructural observation, porosity, and the secondary structure confirmed that the structure and properties of keratin hydrogels can be changed by controlling freeze–thaw cycles. Meanwhile, it is found that RHK hydrogel had high optical transmittance, and still maintained its fluorescent properties, which would be useful to observe the wound healing and locate the drug delivery process.

Controlled self-assembly of plant proteins into high-performance multifunctional nanostructured films

The abundance of plant-derived proteins, as well as their biodegradability and low environmental impact make them attractive polymeric feedstocks for next-generation functional materials to replace current petroleum-based systems. However, efforts to generate functional materials from plant-based proteins in a scalable manner have been hampered by the lack of efficient methods to induce and control their micro and nanoscale structure, key requirements for achieving advantageous material properties and tailoring their functionality. Here, we demonstrate a scalable approach for generating mechanically robust plant-based films on a metre-scale through controlled nanometre-scale self-assembly of water-insoluble plant proteins. The films produced using this method exhibit high optical transmittance, as well as robust mechanical properties comparable to engineering plastics. Furthermore, we demonstrate the ability to impart nano- and microscale patterning into such films through templating, leading to the formation of hydrophobic surfaces as well as structural colour by controlling the size of the patterned features.

Sodium silicate-derived aerogels: effect of processing parameters on their applications

Inorganic silica aerogels are large three-dimensional open networks with properties such as low density, high porosity, low thermal conductivity, high specific surface area, low refractive index, and high optical transmittance depending on their preparation conditions.

SiO2-Based Nanostructured Superhydrophobic Film with High Optical Transmittance

Superhydrophobic and transparent films would be very useful in optoelectronic applications where non-wetting is desired. Herein, hexamethyldisilazane was used for functionalization of fumed SiO2 nanoparticles via silylation derivatization reaction. Modified fumed SiO2 nanoparticle dispersion was used for fabrication of SiO2-based nanostructured film via drop-casting method. This film exhibited a combination of high optical transmittance in the visible spectrum portion and superhydrophobicity (163° ± 1° and hysteresis as low as ~2°). This was possible to achieve due to the submicrometer-scale roughness (Rq = 252.7 nm) and branched network structure of the film surface with convenient surface chemistry of hydrophobic methyl groups. The method reported herein is not complicated, allows for obtaining large quantities of modified SiO2 nanoparticle dispersions and can be used in combination with other deposition methods.

A Novel Touch Panel Design for High Optical Transmittance for Interactive Displays

In this article, we propose a new sensor architecture, in which electrodes are settled at the edge of the touch panel, ensuring a very high optical transmittance. The touch event detection relies on electrical capacitance tomography (ECT) technique. The presented technique provides a feasible means to boost the optical transmittance of the touch panel layer while maintaining touch detection accuracy.