In situ growth of silver nanowires on reduced graphene oxide sheets for transparent electrically conductive films

In situ growth of silver nanowires (AgNWs) on the surface of functionalized-graphene (rGO) nanosheets is achieved through a synchronous reduction of graphene oxide and silver ions using sodium citrate as the chemical reduction agent in the presence of poly(diallyldimethyl ammonium chloride). The prepared AgNW-rGO hybrids are characterized by zeta potential, X-ray diffraction, Raman spectroscopy, transmission and scanning electron microscopy, atomic force microscopy, respectively. The stable AgNW-rGO aqueous solution is readily used to fabricate highly transparent, flexible and conductive films. The AgNW-rGO/PVA films show an electrical conductivity of 19.5 S m(-1) with 67.7% light transmittance at a wavelength of 550 nm.