INTERPHASE LAYER FOR IMPROVED LITHIUM METAL CYCLING
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, a rechargeable battery is provided. The rechargeable battery comprises a cathode film including a lithium transition metal oxide, a separator film coupled to the cathode film and capable of conducting ions, a solid electrolyte interphase film coupled to the separator, wherein the solid electrolyte interphase film is a lithium fluoride film or a lithium carbonate film, a lithium metal film coupled to the solid electrolyte interphase film and an anode current collector coupled to the lithium metal film.
1 . An energy storage device, comprising:
a cathode film including a lithium transition metal oxide;
a separator film coupled to the cathode film and capable of conducting ions;
a solid electrolyte interphase film coupled to the separator, wherein the solid electrolyte interphase film is a lithium fluoride film or a lithium carbonate film;
a lithium metal film coupled to the solid electrolyte interphase film; and
an anode current collector coupled to the lithium metal film.
2 . The energy storage device of claim 1 , wherein the solid electrolyte interphase film has a thickness between about 10 nanometers and about 20 nanometers.
3 . The energy storage device of claim 1 , further comprising a cathode current collector coupled to the cathode film.
4 . The energy storage device of claim 1 , wherein the solid electrolyte interphase film is deposited by a physical vapor deposition process.
5 . The energy storage device of claim 1 , wherein the solid electrolyte interphase film is deposited on the lithium metal film prior to an initial charge.
6 . The energy storage device of claim 1 , wherein the solid electrolyte interphase film is a lithium fluoride film.
7 . The energy storage device of claim 1 , further comprising a bonding film positioned between the separator film and the solid electrolyte interphase film.
8 . The energy storage device of claim 7 , wherein the bonding film comprises a gel polymer, a solid polymer, carbon-containing materials, or combinations thereof.
9 . The energy storage device of claim 8 , wherein the bonding film is formed by dip-coating, slot-die coating, gravure coating, chemical vapor deposition (CVD) processes, physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes, and/or printing.
10 . A method of forming an energy storage device, comprising:
depositing a solid electrolyte interphase layer on a lithium film by a physical vapor deposition (PVD) process, a slot-die process, a thin-film transfer process, or a three-dimensional lithium printing process, wherein the solid electrolyte interphase layer is a lithium fluoride film or a lithium carbonate film.
11 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the solid electrolyte interphase film is deposited by a physical vapor deposition process.
12 . The method of claim 10 , wherein the solid electrolyte interphase film is deposited on the lithium metal film prior to an initial charge.
13 . The method of claim 10 , further comprising depositing a protective film on the solid electrolyte interphase layer, wherein the protective film is an interleaf film or an ion-conducting polymer film.
14 . The method of claim 10 , further comprising depositing a bonding film on the solid electrolyte interphase layer, wherein the bonding film comprises a gel polymer, a solid polymer, carbon-containing materials, or combinations thereof.
15 . The method of claim 14 , wherein the bonding film is deposited by dip-coating, slot-die coating, gravure coating, chemical vapor deposition (CVD) processes, physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes, and/or printing.
16 . The method of claim 14 , further comprising depositing a separator film on the bonding film.
17 . An integrated processing tool for forming lithium coated electrodes, comprising:
a reel-to-reel system for transporting a continuous sheet of material through following processing chambers:
a chamber for depositing a thin film of lithium metal on the continuous sheet of material; and
a chamber for depositing a solid electrolyte interphase film on a surface of the thin film of lithium metal, wherein the solid electrolyte interphase layer is a lithium fluoride film or a lithium carbonate film.
18 . The integrated processing tool of claim 17 , wherein the chamber for depositing the thin film of lithium metal is selected from the group consisting of: a physical vapor deposition (PVD) system, a thin film transfer system, a lamination system, and a slot-die deposition system.
19 . The integrated processing tool of claim 18 , wherein the chamber for depositing the solid electrolyte interphase film on the surface of the thin film of lithium metal is selected from the group consisting of: an electron-beam evaporator, a thermal evaporation system, or a sputtering system.
20 . The integrated processing tool of claim 18 , wherein the continuous sheet of material is a flexible conductive substrate.