Transparent plasmonic nanowire electrodes via self-organised ion beam nanopatterning

Here we report on a self-organised approach for the synthesis of transparent metal nanowire arrays based on defocused ion beam sputtering. The nanowire arrays supported on low cost dielectric substrates (glass slides) feature a dual functionality: they exhibit anisotropic conductivity, with sheet resistances which are reduced in comparison to the transparent conductive oxides, and additionally support localised plasmon resonances. The latter represents an attractive feature in view of Plasmon enhanced photon harvesting applications in which the nanostructured metal electrodes are employed as an alternative to conventional transparent conductive oxides.