Stabilizing the Interface of NASICON Solid Electrolyte against Li Metal with Atomic Layer Deposition

Yulong Liu; Qian Sun; Yang Zhao; Biqiong Wang; Payam Kaghazchi; Keegan R Adair; Ruying Li; Cheng Zhang; Jingru Liu; Liang-Yin Kuo; Yongfeng Hu; Tsun-Kong Sham; Li Zhang; Rong Yang; Shigang Lu; Xiping Song; Xueliang Sun

doi:10.1021/acsami.8b06366

Stabilizing the Interface of NASICON Solid Electrolyte against Li Metal with Atomic Layer Deposition

ACS Appl Mater Interfaces. 2018 Sep 19;10(37):31240-31248. doi: 10.1021/acsami.8b06366. Epub 2018 Sep 7.

Authors

Yulong Liu¹, Qian Sun¹, Yang Zhao¹, Biqiong Wang¹, Payam Kaghazchi^{2

3}, Keegan R Adair¹, Ruying Li¹, Cheng Zhang⁴, Jingru Liu⁴, Liang-Yin Kuo², Yongfeng Hu⁵, Tsun-Kong Sham⁶, Li Zhang⁷, Rong Yang⁷, Shigang Lu⁷, Xiping Song⁴, Xueliang Sun¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Mechanical and Materials Engineering , University of Western Ontario , London , Ontario N6A 5B9 , Canada.
² Physikalische und Theoretische Chemie , Freie Universitat Berlin , D-14195 Berlin , Germany.
³ Forschungszentrum Jülich GmbH, Institute of Energy and Climate Research (IEK-1), Materials Synthesis and Processing, Wilhelm-Johnen-Straße , 52425 Jülich , Germany.
⁴ State Key Laboratory for Advance Metal and Materials , University of Science and Technology Beijing , Beijing 100083 , China.
⁵ Canadian Light Source , Saskatoon S7N 2V3 , Canada.
⁶ Department of Chemistry , University of Western Ontario , London , Ontario N6A 3K7 , Canada.
⁷ China Automotive Battery Research Institute Co., Ltd , Beijing 100088 , China.

PMID: 30141900
DOI: 10.1021/acsami.8b06366

Abstract

Solid-state batteries have been considered as one of the most promising next-generation energy storage systems because of their high safety and energy density. Solid-state electrolytes are the key component of the solid-state battery, which exhibit high ionic conductivity, good chemical stability, and wide electrochemical windows. LATP [Li_1.3Al_0.3Ti_1.7 (PO₄)₃] solid electrolyte has been widely investigated for its high ionic conductivity. Nevertheless, the chemical instability of LATP against Li metal has hindered its application in solid-state batteries. Here, we propose that atomic layer deposition (ALD) coating on LATP surfaces is able to stabilize the LATP/Li interface by reducing the side reactions. In comparison with bare LATP, the Al₂O₃-coated LATP by ALD exhibits a stable cycling behavior with smaller voltage hysteresis for 600 h, as well as small resistance. More importantly, on the basis of advanced characterizations such as high-resolution transmission electron spectroscope-electron energy loss spectroscopy, the lithium penetration into the LATP bulk and Ti⁴⁺ reduction are significantly limited. The results suggest that ALD is very effective in improving solid-state electrolyte/electrode interface stability.

Keywords: ALD; Al2O3; HRTEM; interface; solid-state electrolyte.