Effect of silver nitrate concentration of silver nanowires synthesized using a polyol method and their application as transparent conductive films

• Using a polyol method to synthesize of silver nanowire
• Concentration effect of silver nitrate on the synthesis was discussed.
• Seed precursors are not used during the silver nanowire synthesizing.
• The silver nanowire diameter and length were 100 nm and 20 μm, respectively.
• High transmittance and low sheet resistance of silver nanowire film can be obtained.

Silver nanowires were synthesized using a polyol process by employing ethylene glycol, poly(N-vinylpyrrolidone), and silver nitrate as precursors. The concentration of silver nitrate was varied to study the resulting changes in aspect ratios of silver nanowires. The experimental results indicated that the growth characteristics of silver nanowires were affected by the synthesis temperature, the concentration of silver nitrate, and the rate at which silver nitrate was added. Field-emission scanning electron microscopy, UV–visible spectrophotometry, and X-ray diffractometry were employed to characterize the silver nanowires. As the concentration of silver nitrate was reduced, the diameters of the silver nanowires decreased, increasing the aspect ratio. The optimal diameter and length of the silver nanowires were 100 nm and 20 μm, respectively. A thin film composed of silver nanowires exhibited average transmittance of 92.15% at visible wavelengths and a sheet resistance of 20 Ω/sq; such a film could be used as a transparent conductive film in commercial applications.