Flexible transparent conductive electrode of Au/PDMS prepared by electrochemical-assisted peeling

Metal grids have great potential in flexible transparent conductive electrodes (E-TCEs) due to their high conductivity and transparency. Unlike other TCEs, the sheet resistance and optical transmittance of metal grids can be independently adjusted. However, the large surface roughness resulted from thickened metal layer may increase the risk of electrical short-circuiting for optoelectronic devices. In this paper, a TCE of Au-grid embedded in polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) has been developed by an electrochemical-assisted peeling technique. By a sacrificial etching and transfer process, a smooth surface of Au/PDMS is achieved. The fabricated Au/PDMS TCE shows a surface roughness of 15 nm, a sheet resistance of 8.03 Ω/sq., an optical transmittance of 95.04% and a figure of merit (FoM) of 910. In addition, the mechanical stability of fabricated TCE is also investigated by 10,000 cycles bending with a bending radius of 2 mm. Using the fabricated TCE, a flexible alternating-current-driven electroluminescent (ACEL) device is demonstrated and evaluated, which confirms the use of Au/PDMS TCEs in optoelectronic applications.