title: High-Throughput Synthesis, Screening, and Scale-Up of Optimized Conducting Indium Tin Oxides.
abstract: A high-throughput optimization and subsequent scale-up methodology has been used for the synthesis of conductive tin-doped indium oxide (known as ITO) nanoparticles. ITO nanoparticles with up to 12 at % Sn were synthesized using a laboratory scale (15 g/hour by dry mass) continuous hydrothermal synthesis process, and the as-synthesized powders were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, energy-dispersive X-ray analysis, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. Under standard synthetic conditions, either the cubic In2O3 phase, or a mixture of InO(OH) and In2O3 phases were observed in the as-synthesized materials. These materials were pressed into compacts and heat-treated in an inert atmosphere, and their electrical resistivities were then measured using the Van der Pauw method. Sn doping yielded resistivities of ∼ 10(-2) Ω cm for most samples with the lowest resistivity of 6.0 × 10(-3) Ω cm (exceptionally conductive for such pressed nanopowders) at a Sn concentration of 10 at %. Thereafter, the optimized lab-scale composition was scaled-up using a pilot-scale continuous hydrothermal synthesis process (at a rate of 100 g/hour by dry mass), and a comparable resistivity of 9.4 × 10(-3) Ω cm was obtained. The use of the synthesized TCO nanomaterials for thin film fabrication was finally demonstrated by deposition of a transparent, conductive film using a simple spin-coating process.
authors.affiliation: Christopher Ingold Laboratories, Department of Chemistry, University College London , 20 Gordon Street, London, WC1H 0AJ, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Marchand
authors.affiliation: Christopher Ingold Laboratories, Department of Chemistry, University College London , 20 Gordon Street, London, WC1H 0AJ, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Neel M
authors.initials: NM
authors.lastname: Makwana
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemical Engineering, Imperial College London , South Kensington Campus, London, SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Christopher J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Tighe
authors.affiliation: Christopher Ingold Laboratories, Department of Chemistry, University College London , 20 Gordon Street, London, WC1H 0AJ, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Robert I
authors.initials: RI
authors.lastname: Gruar
authors.affiliation: Christopher Ingold Laboratories, Department of Chemistry, University College London , 20 Gordon Street, London, WC1H 0AJ, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Ivan P
authors.initials: IP
authors.lastname: Parkin
authors.affiliation: Christopher Ingold Laboratories, Department of Chemistry, University College London , 20 Gordon Street, London, WC1H 0AJ, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Claire J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Carmalt
authors.affiliation: Christopher Ingold Laboratories, Department of Chemistry, University College London , 20 Gordon Street, London, WC1H 0AJ, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Jawwad A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Darr
mesh_terms: D004553:Electric Conductivity; D057166:High-Throughput Screening Assays / Q000379:methods*; D053758:Nanoparticles; D010865:Pilot Projects; D011208:Powders; D017971:Tin Compounds / Q000138:chemical synthesis* / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D011208:Powders; D017971:Tin Compounds; C109984:indium tin oxide
keywords: continuous hydrothermal; indium tin oxide; nanoparticles; scale-up; transparent conducting oxides