Assembly of Graphene Nanosheets and SiO2 Nanoparticles Towards Transparent, Antireflective, Conductive, and Superhydrophilic Multifunctional Hybrid Films

A new approach for the fabrication of transparent, antireflective, conductive and superhydrophilic multifunctional hybrid films through the layer-by-layer (LbL) assembly of reduced graphene oxide (RGO) nanosheets and SiO2 nanoparticles is reported. The RGO nanosheets, SiO2 nanoparticles and films were characterized by means of transmission electron microscopy, UV/Vis absorption spectrophotometry, Raman spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, contact angle/interface system, and a four-point probe. It was found that the graphene/SiO2 hybrid films exhibited a significant increase in transmittance as compared with RGO films. The optical, electronic and wetting properties of hybrid films could be manipulated by rational design of the film structure and variation of the cycle number of the LbL assembly. The obtained transparent, conductive, and superhydrophilic graphene/SiO2 hybrid films showed excellent antireflective, antistatic, and antifogging behaviors. The remarkable performance could be attributed to the combination of electrical conductivity of RGO nanosheets and superhydrophilic antireflective surface derived from SiO2 nanoparticles.