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This contribution deals with flexographic printing of nanoparticulate tin-doped indium oxide (ITO) inks for the manufacture of fine lines on PET foils and glass substrates. The development and optimization of ITO inks, based on solutions of water and ethanol, for the flexographic printing process is presented. The influence of the solvent composition, of the particle content, and of the molar mass of the binder polyvinylpyrrolidone on the printing result is shown. ITO lines with a minimum line width of around 120 μm were printed using a printing plate with a feature size of 50 μm; the ITO lines exhibited a thickness of around 1 μm. Laser post-treatment was used to consolidate the top layer of the nanoparticulate ITO structures resulting in improved electrical properties; low sheet resistance values of around 300 Ω/□ were achieved. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper presents the manufacture of ultrathin (<1 µm) transparent conductive indium tin oxide (ITO) films based on nanoparticulate ITO slurries by the profile rod technique using the binder polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP) as an organic additive. The influence of the slurry composition on the film thickness and the specific electrical resistance as well as the transmission of the dried films is evaluated. The organic solvent ethanol and different types of the PVP binder were tested for slurry preparation and layer performance. ITO green films with low specific electrical resistance of 3 Ω cm, 87 % inline transmission, and layer thicknesses of only 250 nm could be manufactured. Furthermore, the influence of heat treatments up to 400 °C on the electrical properties of the ITO films was evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper discusses the gelation of polyvinylbutyral (PVB) solutions by the addition of tetrabutyl orthotitanate. The addition of around 0.10 vol.% tetrabutyl orthotitanate to an ethanol-based PVB solution already causes a pronounced gelation. For the characterization of this gelation reaction, different rheological measurements are used. The characterization is mainly performed in the linear viscoelastic regime. Time sweeps prove the stability of the samples during the measuring time. Frequency sweeps are used to investigate the state of gelation after different reaction times as well as the dependence of the degree of the gelation on the tetrabutyl orthotitanate concentration. Furthermore, the gelation point is determined by measuring the loss factor tan δ as a function of frequency. A strong influence of water on the degree of gelation is shown; by the addition of different amounts of water, the gelation can be controlled or even avoided. Amplitude sweeps reveal the breakdown of certain network structures at high amplitudes which recover after the strain is lowered. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]