The modification of insulating fabrics with electrically conductive nanomaterials has opened up a novel application field. With the help of Joule heating mechanism, conductive fabrics can be used as mobile heaters. In this work, heatable textiles are fabricated using silver nanowires (Ag NWs). Cotton fabrics are decorated with polyol synthesized Ag NWs via a simple dip-and-dry method. The time-dependent thermal response of the fabrics under different applied voltages is investigated. It is found that the fabrics can be heated to 50 °C under an applied power density of as low as 0.05 W cm(-2). Uniform deposition of Ag NWs resulted in the homogeneous generation of heat. In addition, the stability of the fabrics with time and under different bending and washing conditions is examined. Moreover, a simple control circuit is fabricated and integrated in order to demonstrate the high potential of the fabrics for mobile applications. This work provides a roadmap for researchers who would like to work on heatable textiles with metallic NWs.

Copper nanowires (Cu NWs) appear as the strongest alternative to silver nanowires (Ag NWs) in transparent conductors. Cu NWs; however, are more prone to oxidation compared to Ag NWs even at room temperature. This problem becomes more severe when Cu NWs are used as transparent thin film heaters (TTFHs). In this work, we have utilized ALD deposited zinc oxide (ZnO) shell layers, and provide a comparison with typically used aluminum oxide (Al2O3) shell layers to improve the TTFH performance. While Cu NW network TTFHs barely withstood temperatures around 100 °C, critical thickness of ALD deposited Al2O3 and ZnO layers were determined to find out TTFH limits. Maximum stable and reproducible temperatures of 273 °C and 204 °C were obtained for Al2O3 and ZnO deposited Cu NW network TTFHs, respectively. An extensive parametric study on the NW density and oxide type in conjunction with the electrical conductivity and optical transmittance was conducted. A remarkably high heating rate of 14 °C s−1 was obtained from the fabricated core/shell networks with improved oxidation stability under ambient and high humidity conditions. Finally, these high performance core/shell Cu NW network TTFHs were utilized as efficient defrosters.

Copper nanowires (Cu NWs) hold promise as they possess equivalent intrinsic electrical conductivity and optical transparency to silver nanowires (Ag NWs) and cost substantially less. However, poor resistance to oxidation is the historical challenge that has prevented the large-scale industrial utilization of Cu NWs. Here, we use benzotriazole (BTA), an organic corrosion inhibitor, to passivate Cu NW networks. The stability of BTApassivated networks under various environmental conditions was monitored and compared to that of bare Cu NW control samples. BTA passivation greatly enhanced the stability of networks without deteriorating their optoelectronic performance. Moreover, to demonstrate their potential, BTA-passivated networks were successfully utilized in the fabrication of a flexible capacitive tactile sensor. This passivation strategy has a strong potential to pave the way for large-scale utilization of Cu NW networks in optoelectronic devices.