Abstract
Transition metal oxides (TMOs) with switchable optical properties have been attracting huge attention in the scientific community due to their potential application. In this work, we present a new approach to synthesize and stabilize the titanium dioxide (TiO2) using polyol synthesis. The electrochromic properties of anatase TiO2 thin films deposited by dip coating on flexible substrate, from as-synthesized powder, are studied. To enhanced the electrochromic properties of the TiO2, we recently developed a new strategy based on the addition of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)-poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT: PSS) leading to TiO2 + PEDOT:PSS hybrid composites film. TiO2 + PEDOT:PSS films exhibit improved electrochromic performance in terms of durability, nice color change between dark-blue and white transparent, fast switching time, and coloration efficiency compared to single-component TiO2. To conclude, an flexible electrochromic device combining two electrochromic composite film-based (TiO2 + PEDOT:PSS), via a lithium-based electrolyte membrane plastified with PMMA, was successfully built. The electrochromic characterizations showed that the flexible hybrid composite device switches reversibly from a dark blue to white transparent in the less than 1 s associated with a high in situ transmittance modulation ( increment T = 70%) at 750 nm.