skip to main content


Title: In Situ Method Correlating Raman Vibrational Characteristics to Chemical Expansion via Oxygen Nonstoichiometry of Perovskite Thin Films
Abstract

Effective integration of perovskite films into devices requires knowledge of their electro‐chemomechanical properties. Raman spectroscopy is an excellent tool for probing such properties as the films' vibrational characteristics couple to the lattice volumetric changes during chemical expansion. While lattice volumetric changes are typically accessed by analyzing Raman shifts as a function of pressure, stress, or temperature, such methods can be impractical for thin films and do not capture information on chemical expansion. An in situ Raman spectroscopy technique using an electrochemical titration cell to change the oxygen nonstoichiometry of a model perovskite film, Sr(Ti,Fe)O3−y , is reported and the lattice vibrational properties are correlated to the material's chemical expansion. How to select an appropriate Raman vibrational mode to track the evolution in oxygen nonstoichiometry is discussed. Subsequently, the frequency of the oxygen stretching mode around Fe4+is tracked, as it decreases during reduction as the material expands and increases during reoxidation as the material shrinks. This methodology of oxygen pumping and in situ Raman spectroscopy of oxide films enables future in operando measurements even for small material volumes, as is typical for applications of films as electrodes or electrolytes utilized in electrochemical energy conversion or memory devices.

 
more » « less
NSF-PAR ID:
10460506
Author(s) / Creator(s):
 ;  ;  ;  ;  
Publisher / Repository:
Wiley Blackwell (John Wiley & Sons)
Date Published:
Journal Name:
Advanced Materials
Volume:
31
Issue:
33
ISSN:
0935-9648
Format(s):
Medium: X
Sponsoring Org:
National Science Foundation
More Like this
  1. Abstract

    Epitaxial strain has been shown to produce dramatic changes to the orbital structure in transition metal perovskite oxides and, in turn, the rate of oxygen electrocatalysis therein. Here, epitaxial strain is used to investigate the relationship between surface electronic structure and oxygen electrocatalysis in prototypical fuel cell cathode systems. Combining high‐temperature electrical‐conductivity‐relaxation studies and synchrotron‐based X‐ray absorption spectroscopy studies of La0.5Sr0.5CoO3and La0.8Sr0.2Co0.2Fe0.8O3thin films under varying degrees of epitaxial strain reveals a strong correlation between orbital structure and catalysis rates. In both systems, films under biaxial tensile strain simultaneously exhibit the fastest reaction kinetics and lowest electron occupation in thedz2orbitals. These results are discussed in the context of broader chemical trends and electronic descriptors are proposed for oxygen electrocatalysis in transition metal perovskite oxides.

     
    more » « less
  2. Abstract

    The present paper reports the multifunctional properties of lead‐free BiFeO3–La (BFO–La) thin films. The structural, microstructural, and optical properties have been investigated as a function of the lanthanum doping concentration. The structural properties at room temperature showed the formation of the perovskite structure, thus suggesting the high quality of the obtained thin film compositions. Raman spectroscopy analysis revealed a slight variation in both the peak position and absolute intensity for the Raman active modes, as lanthanum content increases in BiFeO3–La. Crystallized thin films with well‐defined grains as well as crack‐free surfaces have been obtained, for all the studied compositions, as inferred from atomic force microscopy images. The optical properties have been measured, and the values for the direct bandgap was significantly lower than those reported for other BFO‐based systems, being the lowest ∼1.87 eV for the Bi0.90La0.10FeO3composition. Results revealed a noteworthy effect of the defect concentrations induced by the lanthanum doping on the long‐range crystallinity and directly affecting the polarizability of the A–O bond as well as the Fe–O and Fe–O–Fe bond lengths in the perovskite structure. The enhanced optical absorption properties registered for the Bi1–xLaxFeO3(x= 0–20) compositions make these perovskite multiferroic thin films as a potential candidate material for the high‐performance photovoltaic device applications.

     
    more » « less
  3. Abstract

    A synthetic route toward hybrid MoS2‐based materials that combines the 2D bonding of MoS2with 3D networking of aliphatic carbon chains is devised, leading to a film with enhanced electrocatalytic activity. The hybrid inorganic–organic thin films are synthesized by combining atomic layer deposition (ALD) with molecular layer deposition (MLD) using the precursors molybdenum hexacarbonyl and 1,2‐ethanedithiol and characterized by in situ Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, and the resultant material properties are probed by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and grazing incidence X‐ray diffraction. The process exhibits a growth rate of 1.3 Å per cycle, with an ALD/MLD temperature window of 155–175 °C. The hybrid films are moderately stable for about a week in ambient conditions, smooth (σRMS≈ 5 Å for films 60 Å thick) and uniform, with densities ranging from 2.2–2.5 g cm−3. The material is both optically transparent and catalytically active for the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), with an overpotential (294 mV at −10 mA cm−2) superior to that of planar MoS2. The enhancement in catalytic activity is attributed to the incorporation of organic chains into MoS2, which induces a morphological change during electrochemical testing that increases surface area and yields high activity HER catalysts without the need for deliberate nanostructuring.

     
    more » « less
  4. Abstract

    H2W2O7, a metastable material synthesized via selective etching of the Aurivillius‐related Bi2W2O9, is demonstrated as an electrode for high power proton‐based energy storage. Comprehensive structural characterization is performed to obtain a high‐fidelity crystal structure of H2W2O7using an iterative approach that combines X‐ray diffraction, neutron pair distribution function, scanning transmission electron microscopy, Raman spectroscopy, and density functional theory modeling. Electrochemical characterization shows a capacity retention of ≈80% at 1000 mV s–1(1.5‐s charge/discharge time) as compared to 1 mV s–1(≈16‐min charge/discharge time) with cyclability for over 100 000 cycles. Energetics from density functional theory calculations indicate that proton storage occurs at the terminal oxygen sites within the hydrated interlayer. Last, optical micrographs collected during in situ Raman spectroscopy show reversible, multicolor electrochromism, with color changes from pale yellow to blue, purple, and last, orange as a function of proton content. These results highlight the use of selective etching of layered perovskites for the synthesis of metastable transition metal oxide materials and the use of H2W2O7as an anode material for proton‐based energy storage or electrochromic applications.

     
    more » « less
  5. This work demonstrates, for the first time, that a variety of disparate and technologically-relevent thermal, mechanical, and electrochemical oxygen-exchange material properties can all be obtained from in situ , current-collector-free wafer curvature measurements. Specifically, temperature or oxygen partial pressure induced changes in the curvature of 230 nm thick (100)-oriented Pr 0.1 Ce 0.9 O 1.95−x (10PCO) films atop 200 μm thick single crystal yttria stabilized zirconia or magnesium oxide substrates were used to measure the biaxial modulus, Young's modulus, thermal expansion coefficient, thermo-chemical expansion coefficient, oxygen nonstoichiometry, chemical oxygen surface exchange coefficient, oxygen surface exchange resistance, thermal stress, chemical stress, thermal strain, and chemical strain of the model mixed ionic electronic conducting material 10PCO. The (100)-oriented thin film 10PCO thermal expansion coefficient, thermo-chemical expansion coefficient, oxygen nonstoichiometry, and Young's modulus (which is essentially constant, at ∼200 MPa, over the entire 280–700 °C temperature range in air) measured here were similar to those from other bulk and thin film 10PCO studies. In addition, the measured PCO10 oxygen surface coefficients were in agreement with those reported by other in situ , current-collector-free techniques. Taken together, this work highlights the advantages of using a sample's mechanical response, instead of the more traditional electrical response, to probe the electrochemical properties of the ion-exchange materials used in solid oxide fuel cell, solid oxide electrolysis cell, gas-sensing, battery, emission control, water splitting, water purification, and other electrochemically-active devices. 
    more » « less