Electrical conductivity of crack-template-based transparent conductive films: A computational point of view

Abstract

Crack-template-based transparent conductive films (TCFs) are promising kinds of junction-free, metallic network electrodes that can be used, e.g., for transparent electromagnetic interference (EMI) shielding. Using image processing of published photos of TCFs, we have analyzed the topological and geometrical properties of such crack templates. Additionally, we analyzed the topological and geometrical properties of some computer-generated networks. We computed the electrical conductance of such networks against the number density of their cracks. Comparison of these computations with predictions of the two analytical approaches revealed the proportionality of the electrical conductance to the square root of the number density of the cracks was found, this being consistent with the theoretical predictions.