In situ spectroelectrochemical behaviour of nanocrystalline TiO2 thin films electrode fabricated by pulsed laser deposition

Nanocrystalline titanium oxide thin films have been successfully deposited on IT0 coated glass by pulsed laser ablation of metallic Ti target in 0₃/0₂ ambient gases. The intercalation of Li ions in the anatase TiO₂ film electrode is examined by cyclic voltammetry. The electrochromic behaviour of TiO₂ electrode is investigated byin-situ visible transmittance measurement, and two absorption bands at 420 and 650 nm are observed. The absorption falling and rising in color changing with excellent revisibility is relative to the insertion and deintercalation processes of Li ion. These results suggest that nanocrystalline titanium oxide films fabricated by pulsed laser deposition exhibit excellent spectroelectrochemical property. Project supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant No. 29783001) and State Key Laboratory for Physical Chemistry of Solid Surface of Xiamen University (1997).     

多孔炭模板法制备Li4Ti5O12及其嵌锂行为

采用水合氧化钛溶胶为原料, 多孔炭为模板剂, 设计制备了一种新型准纳米晶锂钛复合氧化物, 并用SEM、XRD、恒流充放电及交流阻抗测试表征了材料的形貌、结构和电化学性能. 结果表明, 该氧化物晶粒尺寸约200 nm, 为典型的尖晶石Li4Ti5O12结构. 在0.5C(1C=0.2 mA·cm-2)电流条件下的首次嵌脱锂效率为99.8%, 嵌脱锂电位平坦, 可逆容量为117 mAh·g-1; 当电流从0.5C增至5C时, 其可逆嵌锂容量仍在100 mAh·g-1以上, 容量保持率大于86%, 倍率充放电性能优异. 交流阻抗测试结果表明, 模板剂多孔炭的应用使合成的尖晶石Li4Ti5O12具有更佳的导电性能, 且多孔特征明显.     

Li_4Ti_5O_(12)纳米片的合成及储锂性能研究

以无定形的水合二氧化钛为前驱物,水热法合成了200～400nm大小的Li4Ti5O12纳米片作为锂离子电池负极材料.XRD(X射线衍射)、SEM(扫描电子显微镜)和TEM(透射电镜)分析表征样品的物相结构、表观形貌;循环伏安、充放电循环和电化学交流阻抗技术分别测定该纳米Li4Ti5O12在有机电解液和室温离子液体S114TFSI电解液中的电化学性能.结果表明,该材料具有较高的放电容量和良好的循环性能,有望成为锂二次电池新型负极材料.     

Changes in electronic structure upon lithium insertion into the A-site deficient perovskite type oxides (Li,La)TiO3

Investigation on variation of the electronic structure accompanying the electrochemical lithium insertion into the perovskite type oxide, (Li,La)TiO3, has been carried out by X-ray absorption spectroscopy (XAS). During the electrochemical lithium insertion, titanium ion reduced its oxidation state from Ti4+ to Ti3+, while La3+ does not contribute to the reduction reaction resulting from Ti K-edge and La L3-edge XAS, respectively. Furthermore, O K-edge XAS showed marked spectral changes with electrochemical lithium insertion, indicating the electronic structure around oxide ion affected by lithium insertion reaction. From the XAS measurement, we have concluded the variation observed in O K-edge XAS was related to the strong interaction with inserted Li ion. To confirm this, first-principles band calculations were performed for the perovskite structure before and after electrochemical lithium insertion. The calculated results showed that the electron originated from inserted Li transferred to neighboring oxide ion locally as well as to Ti ion. This may be due to local neutralization effect of Li to reduce the electrostatic interaction in the crystal.     

SEM and AES depth profile studies of thin titanium and titanium oxide films covered by nanoscale evaporated Au layers

Thin titanium and titanium oxide films, both covered by ultra-thin gold layers, have been compared with titanium films after analysis, using a combination of SEM and AES. The Ti films were prepared under UHV conditions by evaporation on a glass substrate. The Ti oxide layers were prepared in situ by precisely controlled oxygen sorption at 298 K on Ti film. Both Ti and Ti oxide films were then covered in situ by a very thin Au layer. Analysis was performed in a separate system after long-term exposure of the films to air. SEM analysis revealed a much smaller size grain on the Au coated Ti films than on Ti films not coated with a Au layer. The thin gold layers covering the Ti surface prevent an extensive air interaction with Ti film. The analysis of the features of the Ti Auger spectra during the sputter profile measurements allow to characterise the chemical nature of Ti-oxide formed in Ti/Au interface region. Received: 7 September 1998 / Revised: 14 January 1999 / Accepted: 2 February 1999     

Epitaxial growth and electrochemical properties of Li4Ti5O12 thin-film lithium battery anodes

Epitaxial Li(4)Ti(5)O(12) thin-films were successfully synthesized on SrTiO(3) single-crystal substrates with (111), (110), and (100) lattice plane orientations using pulsed laser deposition (PLD). Thin-film X-ray diffraction (XRD) revealed that the Li(4)Ti(5)O(12) films had the same orientation as the SrTiO(3) substrates: Li(4)Ti(5)O(12) (111) on SrTiO(3) (111), Li(4)Ti(5)O(12) (110) on SrTiO(3) (110), and Li(4)Ti(5)O(12) (100) on SrTiO(3) (100). These epitaxial films contained island structures, and the morphology of the (111), (110), and (100) films, observed by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), exhibited angular, needle-like, and circular shapes, respectively. The electrochemical properties of 20 nm thick Li(4)Ti(5)O(12) (111) and (110) films were investigated by cyclic voltammetry. Reversible intercalation proceeded through both lattice planes due to the three-dimensional diffusion pathway of lithium in the spinel framework. Reduction peaks in the first cathodic scan appeared at different positions from those in subsequent scans, suggesting a surface reconstruction at the Li(4)Ti(5)O(12) surface due to interfacial reactions.     

锂钛复合氧化物锂离子电池负极材料的研究

采用 3种化学方法合成锂钛复合氧化物 .应用X -射线衍射分析对其结构进行表征以及电化学性能测试 ,结果表明 :由Li2 CO3、TiO2 高温合成的锂钛复合氧化物为尖晶石结构的Li4Ti5 O12 .Li4Ti5 O12 电极在 1 .5V左右有一放电平台 ,充放电可逆性良好 ,即充电电压平台与此接近 ,且电极的比容量较大 ,循环性能良好 .以 0 .30mA·cm- 2 充放电时 ,首次放电容量可达 30 0mAh·g- 1,可逆比容量为 1 0 0mAh·g- 1,经多次充放电循环后 ,其结构仍保持稳定性 .试验电池测试表明 ,Li4Ti5 O12 可选作Li4Ti5 O12 /LiCoO2 锂离子电池的负极材料 .     

ZnO thin films prepared on titanium substrate by PLD technique at different substrate temperatures

ZnO thin films were grown by pulsed laser deposition on titanium substrates at different substrate temperatures ranging from 300 to 700 °C. X‐ray diffraction (XRD), X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS),photoluminescence, and Raman spectroscopy are employed to investigate the change of properties. XRD, XPS, and Raman data showed that the films consisted of TiO₂ at high substrate temperature, which will deteriorate the crystallization quality of ZnO films. The optimum temperature for the growth of ZnO films on the Ti substrate is about 500 °C in this paper. The ZnO films grown on titanium substrate can be used in direct current, microwave, and medical applications. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Optoelectric patterning: Effect of electrode material and thickness on laser‐induced AC electrothermal flow

Rapid electrokinetic patterning (REP) is an emerging optoelectric technique that takes advantage of laser‐induced AC electrothermal flow and particle‐electrode interactions to trap and translate particles. The electrothermal flow in REP is driven by the temperature rise induced by the laser absorption in the thin electrode layer. In previous REP applications 350–700 nm indium tin oxide (ITO) layers have been used as electrodes. In this study, we show that ITO is an inefficient electrode choice as more than 92% of the irradiated laser on the ITO electrodes is transmitted without absorption. Using theoretical, computational, and experimental approaches, we demonstrate that for a given laser power the temperature rise is controlled by both the electrode material and its thickness. A 25‐nm thick Ti electrode creates an electrothermal flow of the same speed as a 700‐nm thick ITO electrode while requiring only 14% of the laser power used by ITO. These results represent an important step in the design of low‐cost portable REP systems by lowering the material cost and power consumption of the system.     

Dual lithium insertion and conversion mechanisms in a titanium-based mixed-anion nanocomposite

The electrochemical reaction of lithium with a vacancy-containing titanium hydroxyfluoride was studied. On the basis of pair distribution function analysis, NMR, and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, we propose that the material undergoes partitioning upon initial discharge to form a nanostructured composite containing crystalline Li(x)TiO(2), surrounded by a Ti(0) and LiF layer. The Ti(0) is reoxidized upon reversible charging to an amorphous TiF(3) phase via a conversion reaction. The crystalline Li(x)TiO(2) is involved in an insertion reaction. The resulting composite electrode, Ti(0)-LiF/Li(x)TiO(2) ? TiF(3)/ Li(y)TiO(2), allows reaction of more than one Li per Ti, providing a route to higher capacities while improving the energy efficiency compared to pure conversion chemistries.     

LiF-Ni纳米复合薄膜的电化学性能研究

采用脉冲激光沉积法在不锈钢基片上制备了LiF-Ni纳米复合薄膜, 用充放电和循环伏安实验测量了该薄膜的电化学性能. 首次充电容量为107 mAh•g−1, 它对应第一次释放锂的过程. 在充放电循环过程中, 锂的嵌入、脱出通过非原位高分辨电子显微和选区电子衍射得到证实. 这一结果为LiF可以由过渡金属Ni驱动分解提供了直接的实验证据.     

脉冲激光沉积LiFePO4阴极薄膜材料及其电化学性能

采用脉冲激光沉积结合高温退火的方法在不锈钢基片上制备了LiFePO₄薄膜电极. XRD谱图显示, 经650 ℃退火制得的是具有橄榄石结构的LiFePO₄薄膜. 充放电测试表明, LiFePO₄薄膜具有3.45/3.40 V的充放电平台, 与LiFePO₄粉体材料相当. 首次放电容量约为27 mAh•g^－1, 充放电循环100次后容量衰减51%.     

纳米微晶TiO2合成Li4Ti5O12及其嵌锂行为

用溶胶-凝胶法并经热处理制备不同形态和晶体尺寸的TiO2，分别与Li2CO3高温固相反应生成锂钛复合氧化物，经电化学测试发现,用300 ℃热处理所得纳米微晶TiO2制备的Li4Ti5O12具有良好的嵌锂性能，其可逆比容量大于95 mA•h•g－1，充放电效率近100％，循环性能良好，电压平台平稳,在嵌锂至容量≥85％或脱锂至容量≥90％时均有明显的电压变化，可用作锂离子电池负极材料.     

Thin film deposition by means of laser ablation of titanium oxide targets in oxygen radiofrequency electrode plasma

The growth of titanium oxide films by means of target evaporation with a high-intensity laser radiation was studied. The experiments were conducted in vacuum, an oxygen atmosphere, an oxygen radiofrequency (RF) discharge plasma, and the plasma afterglow. It was shown that the use of RF discharge and the substrate mounted on the powered electrode makes it possible to preclude the formation of particles with a size above a few micrometers in the films and to increase their oxygen content, refractive index, and transmission coefficient, as well as the deposition rate.     

Oxidation and carbidation of laser-ablated amorphized Ti particles in carbon monoxide

IR laser ablation of hexagonal titanium in vacuum leads to amorphization of ablated Ti particles and when carried out in gaseous carbon monoxide it proceeds as reactive ablation involving particles amorphization, oxidation and carbidation. The films deposited in vacuum and in the presence of CO were examined by Fourier transform infrared, Raman and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X-ray and electron diffraction and electron microscopy. The Ti films become oxidized upon contact with air and the Ti/C/O films are composed of Ti–O, Ti–C and C–O bonds-containing structures with Ti in Ti²⁺–Ti⁴⁺ state and incorporating crystalline rutile and elemental carbon. The ablation in vacuum represents a new approach to amorphous titanium and it is judged that hot ablated Ti particles are modified by reactions with CO decomposition products into amorphous Ti oxycarbides which undergo rapid post-pulse amorphization.     

Electrochromic and photoelectrochromic properties of sol–gel derived tungsten trioxide/titania composite thin films

Tungsten trixoide/titania (WO₃-titania) composite thin films with W/Ti molar ratios of 100/0, 98/2, 96/4, 94/6 92/8 and 90/10 were prepared on fluorine-doped tin oxide conducting glass, and their electrochromic (EC) and photoelectrochromic (PEC) performances were investigated in this study. The composite thin films were synthesized by sol–gel process using peroxotungstic acid and titanium (IV) n-butoxide as the precursors. The surface morphology and composition of the composite thin films were characterized using scanning electron microscope with energy dispersive spectrometer. Electrochemical experiments with in situ spectroscopic measurement were employed to study the EC properties of the composite thin films. It was found that the presence of titania in the WO₃ matrix might slightly decreases its EC performance. PEC cells using the composite thin films as the working electrode and a sputtered semitransparent platinum thin film on ITO as the counter electrode were fabricated and their PEC performances were investigated. The device using composite thin film prepared from sol solution with a W/Ti molar ratio of 96/4 exhibited the best PEC performance.     

Electronic band structure of titania semiconductor nanosheets revealed by electrochemical and photoelectrochemical studies

Electrochemical and photoelectrochemical studies were conducted on self-assembled multilayer films of titania nanosheets on a conductive ITO substrate. Cyclic voltammogram (CV) curves indicated that the titania nanosheet electrode underwent insertion/extraction of Li(+) ions into/from the nanosheet galleries, associated with reduction/oxidation of Ti(4+)/Ti(3+). These processes accompanied reversible changes in UV-vis absorption of the titania nanosheet electrodes. Applying a negative bias of -1.3 V (vs Ag/Ag(+)) and lower brought about absorption reduction where the wavelength is shorter than 323 nm, and vice versa, indicating a flat-band potential of (approximately) -1.3 V and a band gap energy of 3.84 eV. Photocurrents were generated from the titania nanosheet electrodes under a positive bias. The onset potential for photocurrent generation from the titania nanosheet electrodes was around -1.27 V, and the band gap energy estimated from the photocurrent action spectra was 3.82 eV, in excellent agreement with the values obtained from the spectroelectrochemical data. The lack of difference in the band gap energies for titania nanosheet electrodes with different numbers of layers suggests that a nanosheet is electronically isolated in multilayer assemblies without affecting the electronic state of neighboring nanosheets. Similar measurements on the anatase-type TiO(2) electrode revealed that the lower edge of the conduction band for the titania nanosheet is approximately 0.1 V higher than that for anatase, while the upper edge of the valence band is 0.5 V lower.     

Does Li4Ti5O12 need carbon in lithium ion batteries? Carbon-free electrode with exceptionally high electrode capacity

A carbon-free Li(4)Ti(5)O(12) electrode has shown excellent electrochemical performance without any effort to enhance the electrical conductivity. Partial reduction of Ti(4+) and a metallic Li(7)Ti(5)O(12) phase are suggested to be possible origins of the exceptional behavior.     

Electronic structure of cluster assembled nanostructured TiO(2) by resonant photoemission at the Ti L(2,3) edge

The electronic structure of cluster assembled nanostructured TiO(2) thin films has been investigated by resonant photoemission experiments with photon energies across the Ti L(2,3) edge. The samples were produced by supersonic cluster beam deposition with a pulsed microplasma cluster source. The valence band shows resonance enhancements in the binding energy region between 4 and 8 eV, populated by O 2p and hybridized Ti 3d states, and in the region about 1 eV below the Fermi level associated with defects related Ti 3d states. The data show that in as-deposited films Ti atoms are mainly fully (sixfolds) coordinated to oxygen atoms in octahedral symmetry and only a small fraction is in a broken symmetry environment. Since resonant photoemission is closely linked to the local electronic and structural configurations around the Ti atom, it is possible to correlate the resonant photoemission intensity and lineshape with the presence of defects of the films and with the degree of hybridization between the titanium and oxygen atoms.     

自组装成膜技术制备TiO2薄膜的XPS研究

采用自组装成膜技术制备里TiO2薄膜,应用X射线光电子能谱研究自组装膜及其氧化膜和淀积的TiO2薄膜，结果表明，硅烷偶联剂成功地组装在玻璃基片上，足够长时间的氧化对使端基（-SH）完全氧化为磺酸基，淀积在基片上的TiO2膜牢固性好，平均膜厚在10nm．淀积膜中的钛可能有几种不同的氧化态，不同的酸度影响TiO2的淀积效果