Copper nanowires (Cu NWs) have gained attention as an alternative to noble metal nanowires due to their affordable price, but their susceptibility to rapid oxidization in ambient conditions has remained a critical limitation for their practical usage. Many studies have been conducted to address this disadvantage but have been successful only in terms of oxidation prevention at certain temperatures, leaving the matter of oxidation at high temperatures unresolved. In this article, a simple encapsulation structure made of a polyimide and SiOx thin film is presented that effectively prevents the penetration of oxygen and moisture into the Cu NW network. This structure, furthermore, boasts excellent stability at high temperature (≈350 °C) and in underwater, acidic chemical, and abrasive conditions.
I.H., Y.R., and J.K. equally contributed to this work. This work is based upon work supported by the Ministry of Trade, Industry & Energy (MOTIE, Korea) under the Industrial Technology Innovation Program (grant no. 20000512) and the Nano Material Technology Development Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning (grant no. 2009-0082580). S.H., D.K., and J.K. acknowledge financial support from the new faculty research fund of Ajou University, the Ajou University research fund. D.K. acknowledges financial support by the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) funded by the Ministry of Science, ICT & Future Planning (grant no. 2016R1C1B1009689).
