Electrically conductive lines on cellulose nanopaper for flexible electrical devices

Abstract

Highly conductive circuits are fabricated on nanopapers composed of densely packed 15–60 nm wide cellulose nanofibers. Conductive materials are deposited on the nanopaper and mechanically sieved through the densely packed nanofiber networks. As a result, their conductivity is enhanced to the level of bulk silver and LED lights are successfully illuminated via these metallic conductive lines on the nanopaper. Under the same deposition conditions, traditional papers consisting of micro-sized pulp fibers produced very low conductivity lines with non-uniform boundaries because of their larger pore structures. These results indicate that advanced, lightweight and highly flexible devices can be realized on cellulose nanopaper using continuous deposition processes. Continuous deposition on nanopaper is a promising approach for a simple roll-to-roll manufacturing process.