Controlled buckling behavior of patterned oxide structures on compliant substrates for flexible optoelectronics

• In-situ experimental analysis of various patterned shapes under buckling.
• Effect of size and shape on the mechanics of patterned oxide films.
• Higher crack onset values exhibited by smaller size patterns.
• Mechanical failure initiation due to edge effects.

There is currently a great interest to design and fabricate novel flexible devices for solar cell, solid-state lighting, biomedical and energy harvesting applications. Such devices require the use of electrode components. Desired electrodes must exhibit structural integrity, low electrical resistivity and, in most cases, high optical transparency in the visible range.Despite growing efforts to replace them, transparent conducting oxide layers deposited on polymer substrates are still enjoying a dominant role as the electrode component. This is because of their excellent combination of electrical and optical properties. However, their performance when they are subjected to externally-applied mechanical stresses is limited. Such performance has been extensively investigated for the case of continuous brittle oxide films on polymer substrates. However, there is relatively little work reported to date on the mechanical behavior of patterned conducting layers on compliant substrates.In this study we report on the mechanical behavior of various patterned indium tin oxide shapes and sizes on polyethylene terephthalate. Micron-sized shapes include squares, circles, and zigzag-based structures. Controlled buckling experiments are performed in-situ using an optical microscope in order to monitor critical strains and potential failure mechanisms. In addition, ITO electrical resistance changes are continuously monitored during deformation. Furthermore, ex-situ characterization of the tested surfaces using scanning electron microscopy is conducted. Higher crack onset values are observed for the smaller size patterns. Also, square-shaped patterns are found to exhibit the lowest crack onset values. SEM observations suggest cracking-driven and buckling-driven delamination during ITO tensile and compressive buckling mode respectively. In both cases, failure is observed to initiate from the pattern edges.