Transparent, conductive and flexible MXene grid/silver nanowire hierarchical films for high-performance electromagnetic interference shielding

Conventional conductive Ti3C2Tx MXene films are limited by their low transparency and brittleness. Herein, we demonstrate a crack-template assisted spraying methodology for the fabrication of transparent, flexible, and conductive MXene grid-silver nanowire hierarchical films for high-performance electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding, joule heating, and resistive touch panel applications. The conductive grid skeletons are constructed by depositing MXene sheets into the cracks of the templates followed by removing the templates. By tuning the loading density of MXene sheets, both optical transmittance and electrical conductivity of MXene grid skeletons can be precisely manipulated. The resultant conductive grid exhibits an EMI shielding efficiency of 21.7 dB and fair transmittance simultaneously. Crucially, one-dimensional silver nanowires (AgNWs) are adopted to construct hierarchical structures for increasing electron transport channels and enhancing light penetration. The hierarchical MXene grid/AgNW film achieves a high transmittance of 81% and an excellent EMI shielding efficiency of 24.6 dB. The transparent, flexible and conductive MXene grid/AgNW film is suitable for transparent heaters and resistive touch panels. The integration of grid fabrication and the hierarchical structure design effectively balances the transparency and the conductivity, and is promising for producing multifunctional films with high transparency, high conductivity, and high EMI shielding efficiency.

Automated summary

This study demonstrates a crack-template assisted spraying method for the fabrication of transparent, flexible, and conductive MXene grid-silver nanowire hierarchical films. The optical transmittance and electrical conductivity of the MXene grid skeletons can be precisely manipulated by tuning the loading density of MXene sheets. Hierarchical structures are constructed using one-dimensional silver nanowires for increasing electron transport channels and enhancing light penetration. The resulting film exhibits high transmittance and excellent EMI shielding efficiency.