Lithium Diffusion in Ion-Beam Sputter-Deposited Lithium-Silicon Layers

Lithium-silicon compounds are used as active material in negative electrodes of Li-ion batteries. The knowledge of Li diffusion in these materials is of importance for an optimization of charging/discharging rates and achievable maximum specific capacity as well as for an understanding of the basic lithiation mechanism. We carried out Li tracer self-diffusion experiments on ion-beam sputter-deposited LixSi(O) thin films for x ~ 0.25 and x ~ 4.5 using LixSi/6LixSi hetero-structures in combination with secondary ion mass spectrometry in line scan like mode. Measurements with elastic recoil detection analysis revealed the presence of a considerable amount of oxygen in the films. The diffusivities follow the Arrhenius law in the temperature range between 300 and 500 °C with an activation energy of 0.8 – 0.9 eV. The film containing a higher amount of Li shows faster diffusion by one order of magnitude. The Li diffusivities in the investigated Li-rich materials are several orders of magnitude higher than in Li-poor LixSi films (x = 0.02 to 0.06) as given in literature because of a lower activation energy. This indicates the presence of a direct interstitial-like mechanism. Oxygen present in samples with the same Li concentration of x = 0.06 also enhances diffusion but does not lead to a reduction in the activation energy.