Electrical, morphological, and electromagnetic interference shielding properties of silver nanowires and nanoparticles conductive composites

High electrical conductive films were prepared by blending silver nanowires (AgNws) with hydrophilic and hydrophobic resins. 3-Aminopropyltriethoxysilane (APTES) silane was utilized to modify the surface of AgNws. The electrical properties, SEM morphological observation and weathering resistance of AgNws based conductive films were compared with those of silver nanoparticles (AgNps) conductive films. Due to the high aspect ratio of AgNws, the silver content in the conductive film could be reduced significantly by adding AgNws. Therefore, with increasing of binder ratio the conductive film possessed better mechanical stability. With the increasing of the silver content, the shielding effectiveness (SE) of electromagnetic interference (EMI) of the silver nanomaterial conductive film was increased. When the SE was under −20 dB (>99%) for all frequency ranging between 3 and 17 GHz, AgNws showed better efficiency in EMI shielding than AgNps, as a result of less requirement in content, which is of critical importance for the potential of silver based materials in enhancing electrical conductivity and EMI.