Introduction of Taiwan Association for Coating and Thin Film Technology (TACT)/ Enhanced Transmittance and Conductivity of TCO Coatings Deposited by High-Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering

<p>Introduction of Taiwan Association for Coating and Thin Film Technology (TACT)</p><p>Since its establishment on September 3, 1999, Taiwan Association for Coating and Thin Film Technology (TACT) has grown into the most active society in the field of thin-film and coating technology in Taiwan. As one of the most influential and impactful societies in Taiwan's academia and industry, TACT not only fosters the advancement of coating technology but also provides vital technical support services to the industry. The society also actively engages in international conferences and events related to coating and thin film technology, effectively raising awareness about TACT on a global scale. Commencing from TACT 2009, a biannual international thin film conference has been convened, attracting more than 700 attendees from around the world. This conference serves as a platform for the exchange of knowledge and ideas among researchers and engineers in both academia and industry. Moreover, selected papers presented during the conferences have been featured in esteemed journals, such as “Surface & Coating Technology” and “Thin Solid Films.” Furthermore, each of TACT’s international conferences has garnered endorsements from prestigious societies like the American Vacuum Society (AVS), Thin Film Society (TFS), Korean Vacuum Society (KVS), and particularly, Japan Society of Vacuum and Surface Science (JVSS) for TACT 2023 (https://tact2023.conf.tw). We look forward to establishing collaborations with other relevant societies and extending a warm invitation to all members to participate in our upcoming conferences.</p><p></p><p>Enhanced Transmittance and Conductivity of TCO Coatings Deposited by High-Power Impulse Magnetron Sputtering A transparent conductive material, mostly transparent conductive oxide (TCO), is essential and indispensable for flexible electronics. Different from the conventional, single-layered TCO, multilayered oxide/metal/oxide (OMO) structures have been investigated as a promising alternative. The metal layer reduces the electrical resistance of the oxides, and the transparency is enhanced by suppressing the reflection from the middle metal layer and substrate. Meanwhile, due to the limited temperature tolerance of the flexible polymeric substances, a high-power impulse magnetron sputtering technique has been used to deposit the OMO structures at a substrate temperature lower than 70 oC. Various OMO multilayered structures, including ZnO/metal/ZnO, ITO/metal/ITO, are deposited on polyethylene naphthalate (PEN) and polyethylene terephthalate (PET), and soda lime glass. The effects of layer thickness and metal type on the transmission and resistivity of the obtained OMO structures are investigated. The applications of our OMO coatings in transparent micro-LED displays and wearable devices made of a wireless vertical-type LED package are also demonstrated.</p><p></p><p>References</p><p>ACS Appl. Electron. Mater. 5, 2, (2023) 905–912</p><p>ACS Appl. Electron. Mater. 3, 2, (2021) 979–987</p><p>Thin Solid Films 748 (2022) 139158</p><p>Coatings 11 (2021) 144.</p>