Fluorine Doping Induced Crystal Space Change and Performance Improvement of Single Crystalline LiNi 0.6 Co 0.2 Mn 0.2 O 2 Layered Cathode Materials

Mixed Conducting Oxide Coating for Lithium Batteries

Thin, uniform, and conformal coatings on the active electrode materials are gaining more importance to mitigate degradation mechanisms in lithium-ion batteries. To avoid polarization of the electrode, mixed conductors are of crucial importance. Atomic layer deposition (ALD) is employed in this work to provide superior uniformity, conformality, and the ability to precisely control the stoichiometry and thickness of the desired coating materials. We provide experimental and computational guidelines for the need of mixed electronic and ionic conducting coating materials, especially in the case where highly uniform and conformal coatings are achieved. We report promising results for ALD-deposited protective films achieved by doping fluorine (F) into a lithium vanadate coating. The F-doped lithium vanadate coating at the optimal doping level exhibits an electrical conductivity of 1.2 × 10-5 S·cm-1. Density functional theory calculations corroborate enhanced mixed electronic and ionic conduction in F-doped lithium vanadate through band structure analysis and climbing-image nudge elastic band (CI-NEB) calculations. It has been demonstrated that the experimentally determined optimal doping concentration aligns well with that predicted by density functional theory calculations. CI-NEB calculations have shown that the activation energy for lithium-ion transport was the lowest for optimally doped lithium vanadate.

Enriching the Deep-Red Emission in (Mg, Ba)3M2GeO8: Mn4+ (M = Al, Ga) Compositions for Light-Emitting Diodes

Red emission from Mn⁴⁺-containing oxides inspired the development of high color rendering and cost-effective white-light-emitting diodes (WLEDs). Aiming at this fact, a series of new crystallographic site modified (Mg, Ba)₃M₂GeO₈: Mn⁴⁺ (M = Al, Ga) compositions were developed with strong deep-red emission in the reaction to UV and blue lights. The Mg₃Al₂GeO₈ host is composed of three phases: orthorhombic-Mg₃Ga₂GeO₈, orthorhombic-Mg₂GeO₄, and cubic-MgAl₂O₄. However, Mg₃Ga₂GeO₈ secured an orthorhombic crystal structure. Interestingly, Mg₃Al₂GeO₈: Mn⁴⁺ showed a 13-fold more intense emission than Mg₃Ga₂GeO₈: Mn⁴⁺ since Mn⁴⁺ occupancy was preferable to [AlO₆] sites compared to [GaO₆]. The coexisting phases of MgAl₂O₄ and Mg₂GeO₄ in Mg₃Al₂GeO₈: Mn⁴⁺ contributed to Mn⁴⁺ luminescence by providing additional [AlO₆] and [MgO₆] octahedrons for Mn⁴⁺ occupancy. Further, these sites reduced the natural reduction probability of Mn⁴⁺ to Mn²⁺ in [AlO₄] tetrahedrons, which was confirmed using cathodoluminescence analysis for the first time. A cationic substitution strategy was employed on Mg₃M₂GeO₈: Mn⁴⁺ to improve the luminescence, and Mg_3-xBa_xM₂GeO₈: Mn⁴⁺ (M = Al, Ga) phosphors were synthesized. Partial substitution of larger Ba²⁺ ions in Mg²⁺ sites caused structural distortions and generated a new Ba impurity phase, which improved the photoluminescence. Compositionally tuned Mg_2.73Ba_0.27Al_1.993GeO₈: 0.005Mn⁴⁺ exhibited a 35-fold higher emission than that of Mg₃Ga_1.993GeO₈: 0.005Mn⁴⁺. Additionally, this could retain 70% of its ambient emission intensity at 453 K. A warm WLED with a correlated color temperature (CCT) of 3730 K and a CRI of 89 was fabricated by combining the optimized red component with Y₃Al₅O₁₂: Ce³⁺ and 410 nm blue LED. By tuning the ratio of blue (BaMgAl₁₀O₁₇: Eu²⁺), green (Ce_0.63Tb_0.37MgAl₁₁O₁₉), and red (Mg_2.73Ba_0.27Al₂GeO₈: 0.005Mn⁴⁺) phosphors, another WLED was developed using a 280 nm UV-LED chip. This showed natural white emission with a CRI of 79 and a CCT of 5306 K. Meanwhile, three red LEDs were also fabricated using the Mg_2.73Ba_0.27Al_1.993GeO₈: 0.005Mn⁴⁺ phosphor with commercial sources. These could be potential pc-LEDs for plant growth applications.

Reduction of Surface Residual Lithium Compounds for Single-Crystal LiNi0.6Mn0.2Co0.2O2 via Al2O3 Atomic Layer Deposition and Post-Annealing

Surface residual lithium compounds of Ni-rich cathodes are tremendous obstacles to electrochemical performance due to blocking ion/electron transfer and arousing surface instability. Herein, ultrathin and uniform Al2O3 coating via atomic layer deposition (ALD) coupled with the post-annealing process is reported to reduce residual lithium compounds on single-crystal LiNi0.6Mn0.2Co0.2O2 (NCM622). Surface composition characterizations indicate that LiOH is obviously reduced after Al2O3 growth on NCM622. Subsequent post-annealing treatment causes the consumption of Li2CO3 along with the diffusion of Al atoms into the surface layer of NCM622. The NCM622 modified by Al2O3 coating and post-annealing exhibits excellent cycling stability, the capacity retention of which reaches 92.2% after 300 cycles at 1 C, much higher than that of pristine NCM622 (34.8%). Reduced residual lithium compounds on NCM622 can greatly decrease the formation of LiF and the degree of Li+/Ni2+ cation mixing after discharge–charge cycling, which is the key to the improvement of cycling stability.