Crystalline WO3 nanowires array sheathed with sputtered amorphous shells for enhanced electrochromic performance

Kai Tang, Yong Zhang*, Yingdi Shi, J. Cui, Xia Shu, Yan Wang, Yongqiang Qin, Jiaqin Liu, Hark Hoe Tan, Yucheng Wu

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    58 Citations (Scopus)

    Abstract

    Rational construction of crystalline/amorphous tungsten trioxide core/shell nanowire arrays have been obtained by combing solvothermal and magnetron sputtering techniques. High resolution transmission electron microscopy (HRTEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) characterization results reveal that the core/shell nanowires are composed of single crystal hexagonal tungsten trioxide nanocores sheathed with amorphous tungsten trioxide nanoshells. By the well-controlled sputtering technique, the thickness of the amorphous WO3 nanoshell can be precisely modulated which determines evidently electrochromic properties of the core/shell nanostructure. The optimized core/shell nanowires display exceptional electrochromic properties of high optical contrast (84.5% at 633 nm and 80.0% at 1500 nm), fast switching speeds (1.2 s for bleaching and 3.6 s for coloring),high coloration efficiency (83.6 cm2/C at 633 nm) and exceptional cycle stability (91.9% after 3000 cycles). The enhanced performance can be attributed to the complementary advantages of the crystalline nanocores and the well-defined amorphous nanoshells as well as their interface interaction. The strategy of synthesizing crystalline/amorphous core-shell nanoarrays proposes a reliable solution to produce high performance electrochromic materials and devices such as energy saving smart window, outdoor static displays and other energy-efficient applications.

    Original languageEnglish
    Article number143796
    JournalApplied Surface Science
    Volume498
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 31 Dec 2019

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