High work function silver nanowire electrodes via ligand exchange reaction for stretchable organic thin-film transistors

• • Ligand-exchanged AgNW electrodes achieve a work function >5 eV, closely matching the HOMO of IDT-BT, which reduces the hole injection barrier and yields a hole mobility of 0.4 cm2 V−1 s−1 in p-type OTFTs—a performance metric that directly addresses the chronic current-limiting factor in stretchable organic transistors. • • The post-treatment-free fabrication protocol eliminates additional processing steps (e.g., plasma or welding), streamlining manufacturing and reducing potential damage to underlying elastomer substrates, which is critical for high-throughput roll-to-roll production of stretchable electronics. • • Devices retain their original mobility after 30% tensile strain, demonstrating that the ligand exchange does not deteriorate the mechanical deformability of the AgNW network; this strain tolerance is essential for wearable and skin-mounted applications where cyclic deformation is unavoidable. • • The work function tuning via ligand exchange is achieved without compromising the inherent stretchability of the AgNW electrodes, overcoming the trade-off between electrical performance and mechanical robustness that has historically hindered the adoption of AgNWs in high-performance stretchable OTFTs.