IR spectroelectrochemical studies of Fe2V4O13, FeVO4 and InVO4 thin films obtained via sol-gel synthesis

Abstract

In this paper we generalize the IR spectroscopic properties of M3+VO4 (M=Fe, In) orthovanadate and Fe2V4O13 films. The films were prepared using the sol-gel synthesis route from M3+ nitrates and vanadium oxoisopropoxide. The vibrational bands in the IR absorbance spectra of the films are classified in terms of terminal V-O stretching (1050–880 cm–1), bridging V-O...Fe and V...O...Fe stretching (880–550 cm–1), mixed V-O-V deformations and Fe-O stretching (<550 cm–1) modes. Ex situ IR spectra of films were measured after consecutive charging/discharging to various intercalation coefficients x and correlated to the current peaks in the cyclic voltammetry curves measured in 1 M LiClO4/propylene carbonate electrolyte. We classified the ex situ IR spectra of charged/discharged films according to their vibrational band changes. The results reveal that, for small values of the intercalation coefficient, crystalline FeVO4, InVO4 and Fe2V4O13 films exhibit a simultaneous decrease in the intensity of all IR bands while the band frequencies remain unaffected. For the higher intercalation levels, IR mode frequencies are shifted, signaling the presence of reduced vanadium. Further charging leads to an amorphization of the film structure, which was established from the similarity of the IR spectra of charged films with those of amorphous films prepared at lower annealing temperatures. The results confirm that ex situ IR spectroelectrochemical measurement is an effective way to assess the structural changes in films with different levels of intercalation.