Note: Electrochemical cell for in operando X-ray diffraction measurements on a conventional X-ray diffractometer

Steffen Hartung; Nicolas Bucher; Ramona Bucher; Madhavi Srinivasan

doi:10.1063/1.4926465

Note: Electrochemical cell for in operando X-ray diffraction measurements on a conventional X-ray diffractometer

Rev Sci Instrum. 2015 Aug;86(8):086102. doi: 10.1063/1.4926465.

Authors

Steffen Hartung¹, Nicolas Bucher¹, Ramona Bucher¹, Madhavi Srinivasan¹

Affiliation

¹ TUM CREATE, Singapore 138602, Singapore.

PMID: 26329242
DOI: 10.1063/1.4926465

Abstract

Electrochemical in operando X-ray diffraction (XRD) is a powerful method to analyze structural changes of energy storage materials while inserting/de-inserting charge carriers, such as Li- or Na-ions, into/from a host structure. The design of an XRD in operando cell is presented, which enables the use of thin (6 μm) aluminum foil as X-ray window as a non-toxic alternative to conventional beryllium windows. Owing to the reduced thickness, diffraction patterns and their changes during cycling can be observed with excellent quality, which was demonstrated for two cathode materials for sodium-ion batteries in a half-cell set-up, P2-Na(0.7)MnO2 and Na(2.55)V6O16 ⋅ 0.6H2O.