Spray-coated transparent hybrid electrodes for high-performance electrochromic devices on plastic

Highly transparent and conducive electrodes based on Ag-nanowires (Ag-NWs) and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) have been fabricated by spray-coating. The performance of hybrid electrodes is optimized by carefully adjusting the formulation of ink precursors. As a result, the hybrid electrodes in this work show lower sheet resistance than Ag-NW only electrodes or commercially available ITO-coated glasses. When we employ the hybrid electrodes for electrochromic devices (ECDs), larger variations in optical response, higher coloration efficiency, and faster kinetic behaviors are achieved compared to conventional ITO-based devices. In addition, we successfully demonstrate patterned, flexible ECDs on plastic by taking advantages of the wide application range of spray-coating and the elastic characteristics of the EC gels.