NanoMarkets details ‘alternative’ TCO materials and markets in new report

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  Sentech Instruments' new TCO inspection tool, the SenSol Haze. Image: Sentech

Research and analysis firm NanoMarkets has published a new report entitled “Emerging Markets for Non-ITO Transparent Conductive Oxides”, detailing the market opportunities for non-indium tin oxide (ITO) TCOs. The report’s findings suggest that the market for these materials will reach approximately US$925 million by 2016.

Nanomarkets conducted the  report in response to what it feels is an omission of those myriad opportunities emerging from the TCO sector as analysts focus their efforts on the newer transparent conductive nanomaterials. The report details the commercial use of materials including FTO, ATO, AZO, GZO, IZO, multicomponent amorphous TCOs (MATCOs) and p-type materials.

It found that fluorine-doped tin oxide (FTO) is a very promising material for use as the dominant transparent conductor in CdTe versions of photovoltaics. It is also an integral part of low-emittance (low-e) architectural windows, which, according to the US DOE, is a rapidly growing market despite the slowdown in the construction industry. FTO is also a candidate for use in plasma displays, DSC solar applications and possibly to replace some silver coatings.
 
Antimony tin oxide (ATO) in its nanomaterial form also looks set to expand its range of use, and potential applications include nano-ITO in heat shielding and antistatics, gas sensors construction and printable ATO inks for the patterning of ATO thin films.  

The report also looks at the applications for these 'alternative' TCOs across a variety of industries, including LCD, e-paper, plasma and OLED displays; touch-screen sensors; thin-film and OPV; OLED lighting; low-e windows and smart windows; solar control film, antistatics and RFI/EMI shielding, and as replacements for a-Si in thin-film transistors.

Companies referenced in the report are: 3M, Advanced Nano Products, Arkema, Asahi Glass, Cardinal Glass, Cathay Advanced Materials, DyeTech Solar, First Solar, Hewlett-Packard, Idemitsu, Kurt J. Lesker, Mitsubishi Materials, Nanophase, Philips Lighting, Pilkington, SAGE Electrochromic, Samsung, Solutia, Sony, Thin-Film Devices, Toshoh, Umicore and US Research Nanomaterials.

The report is available to download here.