Improving mechanical fatigue resistance by optimizing the nanoporous structure of inkjet-printed Ag electrodes for flexible devices.

The development of highly conductive metallic electrodes with long-term reliability is in great demand for real industrialization of flexible electronics, which undergo repeated mechanical deformation during service. In the case of vacuum-deposited metallic electrodes, adequate conductivity is provided, but it degrades gradually during cyclic mechanical deformation. Here, we demonstrate a long-term reliable Ag electrode by inkjet printing.

Deformation-induced grain growth and twinning in nanocrystalline palladium thin films.

The microstructure and mechanical properties of nanocrystalline Pd films prepared by magnetron sputtering have been investigated as a function of strain. The films were deposited onto polyimide substrates and tested in tensile mode. In order to follow the deformation processes in the material, several samples were strained to defined straining states, up to a maximum engineering strain of 10%, and prepared for post-mortem analysis.

Differentiation of deformation modes in nanocrystalline Pd films inferred from peak asymmetry evolution using in situ x-ray diffraction.

Synchrotron-based in situ tensile testing was used to study the dominant deformation mechanisms of nanocrystalline Pd thin films on a compliant substrate. An x-ray diffraction peak profile analysis reveals an (hkl) independent deformation induced peak asymmetry. It is argued that the asymmetry is caused by a broad distribution of elastic strains among individual grains and the complexity of accommodation processes.

Chemical and electrochemical insertion of Li into the spinel structure of CuCr2Se4: ex situ and in situ observations by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy.

The chemical and electrochemical insertion of lithium into the spinel structure of CuCr(2)Se(4) was studied and the chemical reaction pathway was followed by ex situ X-ray diffraction on samples with different Li contents. The electrochemical reaction was investigated by in situ X-ray diffraction and in situ scanning electron microscopy. In the early steps of chemical intercalation, two phases with a different Li content coexist and Cu is extruded from the host material.