Rapid Assembly of Large Scale Transparent Circuit Arrays Using PDMS Nanofilm Shaped Coffee Ring

Abstract

Rapid and precise assembly of functional nanoparticles into well‐defined structures in large scale is motivated by broad fields. In this study, large‐scale transparent conductive circuit arrays are rapidly self‐assembled by simply pipetting a gold nanoparticles suspension onto a PDMS nanofilm patterned substrate with distinct hydrophilic/hydrophobic areas. The solution firstly self‐confines into predefined hydrophilic geometries, followed by assembly of nanoparticles into well‐defined circuits with 1D patterns by coffee ring effect. Submicrometer height and submicrometer‐ to micrometer‐width circuit arrays with various shapes are precisely generated by varying the PDMS nanofilm patterns. Thousands of circuits with different geometries are self‐assembled simultaneously within 1 min. The conductive circuits show good optical transparency up to 95%. After being transferred into PDMS elastomer sheet by encapsulating, the circuits remain highly conductive during bending and stretching. With the advantages of high‐throughput, equipment‐free, scalability, and precise control, this technique will open an avenue for fabricating large‐scale functional materials for applications in electronics, optoelectronics, and healthcare devices.