Influence of the annealing technique on the properties of Li ion-conductive Li1.3Al0.3Ti1.7(PO4)3 films

Abstract

Li1.3Al0.3Ti1.7(PO4)3 films were comparatively prepared by rapid thermal annealing (RTA) and conventional furnace annealing(CFA). The phase identification and surface morphology of the prepared films were characterized by X-ray diffraction and scanning electron microscopy. The electrochemical window, ionic conductivity, activation energy, and electronic conductivity were conducted by cyclic voltammetry, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy, and four-probe technique. The results show that the films prepared by RTA and CFA are homogenous and crack-free. The film prepared by RTA shows smaller grains and is denser than the one prepared by CFA. The electrochemical windows of the two films are beyond 2.4 V. The ionic conductivities of the films prepared by RTA and CFA are 2.7 × 10−6 S cm−1 and 1.4 × 10−6 S cm−1, respectively. The activation energy of the film prepared by RTA is 0.431 eV, which is slightly smaller than the one prepared by CFA. The electronic conductivity of the two films is about 10−10 S cm−1.