Printed Ag Mesh Electrodes with Enhanced Adhesion on Diverse Substrates for Transparent Heater Applications

TL;DR

This paper introduces a method to improve the adhesion of printed silver mesh electrodes on various materials, making them suitable for transparent heaters.

Contribution

A dielectric interlayer is introduced to enhance adhesion and mechanical flexibility of printed Ag mesh electrodes on diverse substrates.

Findings

The optimized electrode on PES film achieved 83% optical transmittance at 550 nm and 0.3 Ω line resistance.

The interlayer improved adhesion and mechanical flexibility across all tested substrates.

Printed electrodes demonstrated uniform heating and feasibility as low-power transparent heaters.

Abstract

Digital printing technologies—including inkjet printing, aerosol jet printing, and electrohydrodynamic jet printing—have emerged as promising strategies for next-generation electronic devices. However, the weak adhesion between printed electrodes and substrates can lead to electrode delamination, thereby compromising device reliability and lifetime. In this study, a dielectric interlayer was introduced to improve the adhesion of silver (Ag) mesh electrodes on glass, polyethersulfone film, and polyimide film substrates. The optimized electrode on PES film achieved an optical transmittance of 83% at 550 nm and line resistance of 0.3 Ω, confirming its suitability as a transparent electrode. The incorporation of the interlayer also enhanced the adhesion and mechanical flexibility across all substrates. Moreover, the printed electrodes exhibited uniform surface heating under an applied bias (≤DC 3 V), and their feasibility as low-power flexible transparent heaters was experimentally demonstrated. These findings present a simple and effective printing strategy for fabricating robust and multifunctional electrodes, offering enormous potential for the realization of future flexible and transparent electronic systems.

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