Open‐Air Combustion Synthesis with Rapid Plasma Processing of Large‐Area Transparent Conducting Oxides

Abstract A vacuum‐free, high‐throughput synthesis of indium tin oxide (ITO) via Combustion Oxidation with Rapid Plasma Processing (CORP) utilizes a solution‐based exothermic combustion reaction to generate the oxide with tunable control of either amorphous or crystalline phases. A subsequent open‐air, forming gas plasma treatment is used to introduce oxygen vacancies and promote crystallization. The evolution of the oxide structure is elucidated by extended X‐ray absorption spectroscopy fine structure analysis. Using CORP, fabrication of 300 cm 2 of ITO possessing a champion sheet resistance of 38 Ω sq. −1 , visible transmission of 89%, conductivity stability for over 250 days, roughness < 2nm, and Haacke figure of merit (%T 550nm 10 /R s ) of 0.012 Ω −1 is achieved. Cost modeling of CORP demonstrates up to a 67% reduction in price for TCOs using fully continuous, in‐line unit operations compared with vacuum sputtering. The work shows a path toward a low‐cost, vacuum‐free manufacturing method for TCOs at commercial scales.