Efficient synthesis of plate-like crystalline hydrated tungsten trioxide thin films with highly improved electrochromic performance.

Plate-like hydrated tungsten trioxide (3WO(3)·H(2)O) films were grown on a fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) coated transparent conductive substrate via an efficient, facile and template-free hydrothermal method. The film exhibited a fast coloration/bleaching response (t(c90%) = 4.3 s and t(b90%) = 1.4 s) and a high coloration efficiency (112.7 cm(2) C(-1)), which were probably due to a large surface area. This journal is © The Royal Society of Chemistry 2012