Ex-situ solid electrolyte interface modification using chalcogenides for lithium metal anode

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10944103-B2
Application number	US-201816150111-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 2, 2018
Priority date	Nov 9, 2017
Publication date	Mar 9, 2021
Grant date	Mar 9, 2021

Abstract

Implementations described herein generally relate to metal electrodes, more specifically lithium-containing anodes, high performance electrochemical devices, such as secondary batteries, including the aforementioned lithium-containing electrodes, and methods for fabricating the same. In one implementation, an anode electrode structure is provided. The anode electrode structure comprises a current collector comprising copper. The anode electrode structure further comprises a lithium metal film formed on the current collector. The anode electrode structure further comprises a solid electrolyte interface (SEI) film stack formed on the lithium metal film. The SEI film stack comprises a chalcogenide film formed on the lithium metal film. In one implementation, the SEI film stack further comprises a lithium oxide film formed on the chalcogenide film. In one implementation, the SEI film stack further comprises a lithium carbonate film formed on the lithium oxide film.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method, comprising:
forming a lithium metal film on a current collector, wherein the current collector comprises a copper film; and
forming a solid electrolyte interface (SEI) film stack on the lithium metal film, comprising:
forming a chalcogenide film on the lithium metal film, wherein the chalcogenide film is selected from the group of bismuth chalcogenide, a copper chalcogenide, or combinations thereof.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the SEI film stack further comprises at least one of a lithium fluoride (LiF) film, a lithium carbonate (Li 2 CO 3 ) film, a lithium oxide film, a lithium nitride (Li 3 N) film, or combinations thereof.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the lithium metal film has a thickness between about 1 micrometer and about 20 micrometers.

4. The method of claim 3 , wherein the current collector has a thickness between about 2 micrometers and about 8 micrometers.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein the current collector comprises:
a first nickel or chromium containing film;
the copper film formed on the first nickel or chromium containing film and having a thickness between about 50 nanometers and about 500 nanometers; and
a second nickel or chromium containing film formed on the copper film and having a thickness between about 20 nanometers and about 50 nanometers.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the current collector comprises:
a polyethylene terephthalate (PET) polymer substrate; and
the copper film formed on the PET polymer substrate, wherein the copper film is deposited via a physical vapor deposition process.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein the current collector comprising the copper film is exposed to a plasma treatment or corona discharge process to remove organic materials from exposed surfaces of the current collector.

8. The method of claim 1 , wherein the chalcogenide film is deposited using a physical vapor deposition (PVD) process having an RF power source or a DC power source coupled to a target composed of the materials of the chalcogenide film.

9. The method of claim 8 , further comprising:
forming a lithium oxide film on the chalcogenide film by depositing an additional lithium metal film via a PVD process performed in an oxygen-containing atmosphere.

10. An anode electrode structure, comprising:
a current collector comprising a copper film;
a lithium metal film formed on the current collector; and
a solid electrolyte interface (SEI) film stack formed on the lithium metal film, comprising:
a chalcogenide film formed on the lithium metal film, wherein the chalcogenide film is selected from the group of a bismuth chalcogenide, a copper chalcogenide, or combinations thereof.

11. The anode electrode structure of claim 10 , wherein the SEI film stack further comprises lithium fluoride formed on the chalcogenide film.

12. The anode electrode structure of claim 10 , wherein the chalcogenide film is selected from the group of CuS, Cu 2 Se, Cu 2 S, Cu 2 Te, CuTe, Bi 2 Te 3 , Bi 2 Se 3 , or combinations thereof.

13. The anode electrode structure claim 10 , wherein the SEI film stack further comprises a lithium oxide film formed on the chalcogenide film.

14. The anode electrode structure of claim 13 , wherein the SEI film stack further comprises a lithium carbonate film formed on the lithium oxide film.

15. An anode electrode structure, comprising:
a current collector comprising a copper film;
a lithium metal film formed on the current collector; and
a solid electrolyte interface (SEI) film stack formed on the lithium metal film, comprising:
a lithium oxide film;
a lithium carbonate film formed on the lithium oxide film; and
a chalcogenide film formed on the lithium carbonate film, wherein the chalcogenide film is selected from the group of a bismuth chalcogenide, a copper chalcogenide, or combinations thereof.

16. The anode electrode structure of claim 15 , wherein the SEI film stack further comprises a lithium nitride film formed between the lithium metal film and the lithium oxide film.

17. The anode electrode structure of claim 15 , wherein the chalcogenide film is selected from the group of CuS, Cu 2 Se, Cu 2 S, Cu 2 Te, CuTe, Bi 2 Te 3 , Bi 2 Se 3 , or combinations thereof.

18. The anode electrode structure of claim 17 , wherein the chalcogenide film is Bi 2 Te 3 .

19. The anode electrode structure of claim 17 , wherein the chalcogenide film has a thickness between about 1 nanometer to about 400 nanometers.

20. The anode electrode structure of claim 19 , wherein the lithium metal film has a thickness between about 1 micrometers and about 20 micrometers.

Assignees

• Applied Materials Inc

Inventors

• Gopalakrishnan Nair Girish Kumar
• Herle Subramanya P
• Armstrong Karl

Classifications

• H01M2004/028

  Positive electrodes · CPC title

• H01M4/628

  Inhibitors, e.g. gassing inhibitors, corrosion inhibitors · CPC title

• H01M10/4235

  Safety or regulating additives or arrangements in electrodes, separators or electrolyte (H01M10/4242 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H01M10/0525

  Rocking-chair batteries, i.e. batteries with lithium insertion or intercalation in both electrodes; Lithium-ion batteries · CPC title

• H01M4/661

  Metal or alloys, e.g. alloy coatings (H01M4/669 take precedence) · CPC title