Microstructure and conductivity of nano-structured silver films deposited on PET fabric

Nano-sized silver film of(50 nm) thickness was deposited onto PET nonwoven fabric by magnetron sputtering,and the effect of technical parameters,such as sputtering power,vacuum pressure,on the morphology and particle diameters of the nano-structured silver thin film was analyzed by AFM.The relationship between sputtering parameters and the conductivity of the sputter coated films was also investigated.The results showed that along with the increase of pressure,sputtering velocity increased first and then decreased.The change rule of the film′s square resistance was the same as that of sputtering velocity.Similarly,the average diameter of the films′ particles increased first and then decreased along with the increase of pressure,but when pressure was above(1.5 Pa,) it changed erratically.