SYNCHRONOUS ELECTROCHROMISM OF LITHIUM ION BATTERY WITH CHEMICALLY FABRICATED TRANSPARENT THIN FILMS

Abstract

Electrochromism synchronous to the charge/discharge of a novel Li ion battery having Li3Fe2(PO4)3 and Li4Ti5O12 thin-film electrodes fabricated by a chemical process, the molecular precursor method, was discovered. A cathode of transparent Li3Fe2(PO4)3 thin film with a thickness of 80 nm was fabricated by heat treating a precursor ethanol solution including a Li(I) complex of nitrilotriacetic acid, an Fe(III) complex of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid, and (dibutylammonium)2H2P2O7 ⋅ 0.5H2O at 550°C for 10 min in air. An anode of transparent Li4Ti5O12 thin film with a thickness of 90 nm was fabricated by heat treating a precursor ethanol solution including a Li(I) complex of nitrilotriacetic acid, a Ti(IV) complex of the identical organic ligand, and hydrogen peroxide at 550°C for 30 min in air. The precursor films for both electrodes were fabricated with a spin-coating method. The thermal reactions of the novel precursors were examined in detail by means of thermogravimetry and differential thermal analysis in order to examine the components and heat-treatment temperature. The crystal structure and surface morphology of the thin-film electrodes fabricated on glass substrates pre-coated with a fluorine-doped tin oxide film were examined with X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM). The rechargeable function of the assembled sandwich-type battery using an electrolytic solution containing LiPF6 was measured by the repeated charge and discharge test at a constant current of 10 μA; a maximum voltage of 3.6 V was recorded. The color changes of the transparent thin-film battery between colorless before charging and a blue-gray color after charging occurred synchronously and repeatedly with the charge/discharge cycles. The intercalation of Li+ ions into the Li4Ti5O12 thin-film anode may be related to the drastic color change and the unprecedented visualization of the electrochemical reaction of a novel Li ion battery.