Polymer Science Faculty Research

Title

Functionalized Graphene Nanoribbon Films as a Radiofrequency and Optically Transparent Material

Document Type

Article

Publication Date

Fall 9-4-2014

Abstract

We report that conductive films made from hexadecylated graphene nanoribbons (HD-GNRs) can have high transparency to radiofrequency (RF) waves even at very high incident power density. Nanoscale-thick HD-GNR films with an area of several square centimeters were found to transmit up to 390 W (2 × 105 W/m2) of RF power with negligible loss, at an RF transmittance of ∼99%. The HD-GNR films conformed to electromagnetic skin depth theory, which effectively accounts for the RF transmission. The HD-GNR films also exhibited sufficient optical transparency for tinted glass applications, with efficient voltage-induced deicing of surfaces. The dispersion of the HD-GNRs afforded by their edge functionalization enables spray-, spin-, or blade-coating on almost any substrate, thus facilitating flexible, conformal, and large-scale film production. In addition to use in antennas and radomes where RF transparency is crucial, these capabilities bode well for the use of the HD-GNR films in automotive and general glass applications where both optical and RF transparencies are desired

Publication Title

ACS Applied Materials & Interfaces

Volume

6

Issue

19

First Page

16661

Last Page

16668

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